UAW Members Authorize Strike at Ford

The United Auto Workers said its members at Ford Motor Co. voted by a 96.4% majority to strike if necessary against the world’s No. 2 auto maker. The UAW represents about 101,000 Ford workers in the U.S. Holding a strike-authorization vote before the expiration of a collective bargaining agreement is standard procedure, the union said. The UAW’s contract with Ford, General Motors Corp. and DaimlerChrysler expires at midnight Sept. 14. Union officials are concerned that a possible spinoff of Ford’s Visteon parts unit could hurt wages and job security, so they took the unusual step of holding strike-authorization votes at all Ford plants in August. Ford’s stock rose 6 cents to close at $51.75 on the New York Stock Exchange.