A high-ranking United Auto Workers official is facing felony charges of embezzlement and fraud, and prosecutors say that several top union officials conspired to steal more than $1.5 million from the union. The Detroit News said one of the unnamed union leaders is union President Gary Jones.
The agreement likely will mirror the pact approved last week by General Motors workers after a 40-day strike.
Some production workers could return to work as early as Friday night or Saturday morning, ending a walkout that was big enough to help push down September U.S. durable goods orders by 1.1%, the largest drop in four months.
Some workers question why union leaders agreed to let General Motors close three factories, wondering if corruption inside the UAW influenced the decision to side with the company.
Details on the four-year pact were posted Thursday on the UAW website as factory level union officials met to decide if they’ll approve the deal. Workers went on strike Sept. 16, crippling the company’s U.S. production and costing it an estimated $2 billion.
The deal was hammered out after months of bargaining but won’t bring an immediate end to the strike by 49,000 hourly workers. They will likely stay on the picket lines for at least two more days as two union committees vote on the deal, after which the members will have to approve.
The appearance of two key executives is a strong sign that bargainers are closing in on a contract agreement that would end the strike, which began on Sept. 16.
With the strike by factory workers against General Motors in its 29th day, there are signs that negotiators may be moving toward an agreement.
The strike has passed the point where GM can make up lost production, according to auto industry analysts.
Nearly four weeks into the United Auto Workers’ strike against General Motors, employees are starting to feel the pinch of going without their regular paychecks.
Contract talks aimed at ending a 21-day strike by the United Auto Workers against General Motors have taken a turn for the worse, hitting a big snag over product commitments for U.S. factories, a union official wrote in an email to members.
General Motors offered striking union members wage increases or lump-sum payments in all four years of a proposed contract, as the walkout continued in its third week. But union bargainers rejected the offer, according to a person briefed on the negotiations.
Both sides are hoping the strike doesn’t last much longer, but while bargaining continues, the top union negotiator says they’re far apart on major issues including wages, job security, health care and a path for temporary workers to become full-time.
The strike against General Motors by the United Auto Workers is playing out amid a corruption scandal inside the UAW that has caused distrust of the union leadership among many rank-and-file members.
One of the main sticking points is health care. GM is looking to cut its costs, but workers say they shouldn’t have to pay more when the company is making billions in profit.
Negotiators for General Motors and the United Auto Workers took a break from bargaining around 9 p.m. Monday but headed back at to the tables on Tuesday as a strike by more than 49,000 employees extended into a second day.
A strike by over 49,000 United Auto workers against General Motors could have been averted had the company made its latest offer sooner, the union’s top negotiator said in a letter to the company.
More than 49,000 members of the United Auto Workers walked off General Motors factory floors or set up picket lines early Monday as contract talks with the company deteriorated into a strike.
The move announced Tuesday means that GM will be the focus of bargaining, and any deal with the company will set the pattern for Ford and Fiat Chrysler. It also means that if the union decides to go on strike, it will be against GM.
The United Auto Workers union is accusing General Motors of violating a national contract by using temporary workers in Indiana instead of employing full-timers who were laid off from its factories.
