DAYTON GM workers reject local contract
Union leaders head back to the bargaining table.
DAYTON (AP) -- Hourly workers at a General Motors Corp.'s assembly plant have rejected a new four-year local contract that the union says included plans to build another vehicle.
The workers ratified a four-year national agreement, which covers pay and benefits.
The local agreement missed approval by fewer than 100 votes, with the tally 1,657 to 1,564, according to the International Union of Electrical Workers.
The union earlier said the proposal included a commitment by GM to spend $50 million in the plant in suburban Moraine to start up production next fall of a new Saab sport utility vehicle.
IUE Local 798 represents about 4,000 hourly workers at the plant, which builds the Chevrolet TrailBlazer, GMC Envoy and Buick Rainier midsize sport utility vehicles.
The union said Wednesday that the current local agreement will be extended until a new one is reached. Negotiations were expected to start up again after the Thanksgiving shutdown.
Back to the table
Jim Clark, chairman of the union's collective bargaining division, said he wasn't sure why members rejected the local deal.
"The local leadership and bargaining team worked really hard to reach this tentative agreement, and we'll do everything we can to come to a new agreement that's satisfactory to our membership," Clark said.
The local contract covers plant-specific issues, such as work rules and health and safety standards. Some union members said they were upset that the proposal did not include a signing bonus.
GM spokesman Tom Wickham wouldn't discuss details of the local pact's defeat or of the fate of the Saab SUV.