Area Development
Negotiators for the United Auto Workers (UAW) and General Motors (GM) have reached a tentative contract agreement and, as a result, the union will suspend its strike and workers will return to their jobs today. According to a UAW statement, workers will report to work no later than the start of the second shift this afternoon. "We are proud of this tentative agreement and we look forward to getting into the field and discussing it with our membership," says Ron Gettelfinger, the UAW's president. UAW negotiators have, according to the union, unanimously recommended that its 74,000 members ratify the new agreement. A GM statement says the new agreement "paves the way for GM to significantly improve its manufacturing competitiveness, providing the basis for maintaining and strengthening its core manufacturing base in the United States." Details of the agreement were not released pending ratification. The contract is expected to serve as a basis for the union's negotiations with Ford and Chrysler in the coming weeks.