Ford Motor Co. is reportedly nearing a deal with the United Auto Workers on labor-contract revisions aimed at bringing Ford's costs in line with those of crosstown rivals General Motors Co. and Chrysler Group LLC.
UAW local officials have been summoned by leadership to Detroit on Tuesday for an update on six-week old talks between the union and Ford,
according to a Reuters report. Historically, UAW leadership have used Detroit meetings to brief locals on the outline of an agreement before sending that deal off to the membership for a vote.
Neither side has commented publicly on the talks, but reports have said Ford is seeking a freeze on entry-level wages, fewer job classifications for skilled trade workers and a pledge not to strike when the current deal expires.
The UAW made similar concessions to both GM and Chrysler leading up to those companies' bankruptcies earlier this year, and union officials have pledged not to leave Ford at a competitive disadvantage. But the UAW could face a tall order in convincing workers at Ford, which is not on the brink of a bankruptcy, to sign off on cuts that their compatriots agreed to.
As one member of a UAW local bargaining committee
told the Detroit News, "any agreement to take away our bargaining power in 2011 would be a terrible decision." Now that the industry has moved away from the precipice, concession deals figure to be much harder to come by. --
Lou Whiteman
Lou Whiteman is a senior writer covering the automotive, transportation and industrial sectors. Follow him on Twitter @louwhiteman
Join Corporate Dealmaker's LinkedIn forum
Juergen Lasowski
And the winners are...
