Automobile Industry Contracts

The head of the Canadian Auto Workers union said he was shocked by Ford Motor Co.'s initial contract proposal and that it would be nearly impossible to reach an agreement before the midnight Tuesday deadline. "It's so bad, it jeopardizes their ability to get a settlement without a work stoppage," said CAW President Buzz Hargrove. Ford had offered a $340 (U.S.) lump-sum payment in the first year and 1% wage increases in the second and third years. The CAW represents about 13,000 Ford workers.

Quantum Technologies said it has received contracts from General Motors Corp. to design and develop fuel-storage systems for the auto maker's planned low-pollution vehicles powered by fuel cells. Financial terms weren't disclosed. Under the contracts, Irvine-based Quantum will help GM build fuel-cell cars and trucks, said Eileen Oswald, spokeswoman for Quantum's parent company, Impco Technologies Inc. in Cerritos.

United Auto Workers members overwhelmingly ratified an agreement that calls for General Motors Corp. to add as many as 1,000 jobs at its Saturn Corp. assembly plant in Tennessee, an increase of up to 14% from the current level, a union official said. The world's largest auto maker also agreed to build a new sport-utility vehicle at the Spring Hill, Tenn., factory beginning in 2001.

As a center of automotive design, Southern California typically leaves the manufacturing of cars and auto parts to the nation's heartland, yet a Van Nuys maker of aluminum wheels has won a series of contracts that analysts believe will give it more than 40% of the market over the next 18 months. Superior Industries International Inc. said Tuesday it won contracts to provide aluminum wheels for the new Pontiac Aztek SUV, the 2001 Dodge Intrepid and a new Buick model from General Motors Corp.

Contract talks resumed between Detroit-based American Axle & Manufacturing Inc. and the United Auto Workers union after bargainers took a rest break following about 36 hours of nonstop negotiations. The two sides are attempting to hammer out a new contract for 7,200 UAW members at five plants in Detroit, Three Rivers, Mich., and Buffalo, N.Y. A strike would force General Motors Corp.

* The strike: On March 4, 2,700 workers struck two factories in Dayton, Ohio, that make brake parts for 90% of the vehicles manufactured by General Motors Corp. in North America. Shortages of those parts ultimately closed 26 of GM's 28 operable assembly plants in North America and trimmed production at 90 parts plants, idling 177,375 GM employees and tens of thousands more at other companies.

GM, UAW Reach Tentative Pact, Avert Strike: The agreement was reached 45 minutes before a Thursday strike deadline set by the United Auto Workers union at the Delphi Interior & Lighting systems plant in Livonia, Mich. The plant makes interior door panels and vinyl tops for General Motors Corp. cars and trucks.

Bargainers reached a tentative agreement Tuesday ending the unexpectedly long strike against General Motors Corp. in Canada, clearing the way for what is expected to be a quick and peaceful resolution of labor talks in GM's far larger U.S. operations. The 20-day strike--the second major walkout for GM in North America this year--idled 46,000 auto workers from Oshawa, Ontario to Casa Grande, Mexico.

GM to Buy South Korean Steel: Seoul-based Pohang Iron & Steel Co. said it will sell steel sheets to General Motors Corp. to make car body panels on a trial basis. "GM and Posco are due to sign a long-term supply contract later this year if the test turns out to be satisfactory for GM," a Posco spokesman said. The company will ship cold-rolled, hot-rolled and galvanized steel sheets under the agreement.

UAW Ratifies Deere Pact: United Auto Workers union members overwhelmingly ratified a new Deere & Co contract that gives them three lump-sum pay increases and allows the company to bring in new hires at a lower rate than current employees, the union announced Sunday night. About 10,500 workers at Deere facilities in six states are covered by the new contract that expires Oct. 1, 1997.

The United Auto Workers said Tuesday that its members at Ford Motor Co. have ratified a new four-year contract. "We're very proud of this contract and the teamwork that made it possible," UAW President Stephen P. Yokich said. "It's rewarding to know that the UAW Ford membership supports the agreement by such a substantial margin." The union said 85% of the workers who voted approved the deal. Vote totals were not immediately available; the union represents about 100,000 Ford workers.

The Canadian Auto Workers withdrew an 11:59 p.m. Tuesday deadline to strike General Motors Corp. after bargainers reached "the framework for a tentative agreement," union President Buzz Hargrove said. The pact was expected to be formalized Tuesday night, after which the CAW would recommend that its 22,000 GM members ratify it, the Hargrove said. GM issued a brief statement saying it and the union had reached a tentative agreement.

The head of the Canadian Auto Workers union said he was shocked by Ford Motor Co.'s initial contract proposal and that it would be nearly impossible to reach an agreement before the midnight Tuesday deadline. "It's so bad, it jeopardizes their ability to get a settlement without a work stoppage," said CAW President Buzz Hargrove. Ford had offered a $340 (U.S.) lump-sum payment in the first year and 1% wage increases in the second and third years. The CAW represents about 13,000 Ford workers.

General Motors and DaimlerChrysler offered the United Auto Workers unprecedented lifetime employment guarantees as the companies vie for leadership in industry-contract talks, union officials said. GM, the world's largest auto maker, also offered to hire "significant" numbers of new workers in coming years and consider building new vehicle models in UAW factories, according to a contract proposed Thursday obtained by Bloomberg News.

General Motors Corp. awarded Alcan Aluminium Ltd. a 10-year, multibillion-dollar supply contract for aluminum, an important ingredient in auto makers' efforts to limit pollution by making vehicles lighter. The world's largest auto maker now uses about 1.7 billion pounds of aluminum annually--an average of 210 pounds per vehicle--making it one of the metal's biggest consumers worldwide. GM expects the per-vehicle average to rise by at least 7% a year.

United Auto Workers members overwhelmingly ratified an agreement that calls for General Motors Corp. to add as many as 1,000 jobs at its Saturn Corp. assembly plant in Tennessee, an increase of up to 14% from the current level, a union official said. The world's largest auto maker also agreed to build a new sport-utility vehicle at the Spring Hill, Tenn., factory beginning in 2001.

Two strikes by the United Auto Workers that threaten to bring General Motors Corp. to its knees stem in part from ambiguities in the 1996 national contract that provides job guarantees to the union while giving GM leeway to downsize. "They never resolved these conflicting issues," said Sean McAlinden, a labor economist with the University of Michigan. "The result is this destructive round of strikes." About 9,200 union members walked out of two parts plants in Flint, Mich.