DELPHI CORP. Unions connect to fight cuts

Union workers gather signatures on petition going to Delphi judge.
STAFF/WIRE REPORTS
DETROIT -- Six unions that represent workers at Delphi Corp. said Monday they are banding together to fight proposed wage and benefit cuts at the auto supplier, a sign Delphi may face a strike as it pushes in bankruptcy court for concessions.
The unions represent 33,650 active Delphi workers. The United Auto Workers union represents about 24,000 of those workers, while the International Union of Electrical Workers union represents about 8,500, including about 3,800 in the Mahoning Valley.
Other unions involved are the United Steelworkers, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers and the International Union of Operating Engineers.
"Delphi's contract proposals to our unions, together with CEO Steve Miller's public statements, clearly reveal senior management's contempt and disdain for the hard-working people who have played a vital role in making Delphi the world's leading automotive parts manufacturer," the unions said in a joint statement.
Response
Delphi spokeswoman Claudia Baucus said the company had seen the statement but wouldn't comment on the unions' actions. Delphi filed for bankruptcy protection last month.
"Our management team continues to work with our unions toward a consensual plan of reorganization, and that's where our focus is right now," Baucus said.
Delphi plans to ask the bankruptcy court to void its current contracts if it fails to reach a deal with its unions by mid-December. If the judge agrees to void those contracts, workers would be free to strike.
The UAW hasn't publicly revealed Delphi's contract proposal. But according to a summary distributed by union members, Delphi wants to cut base wages to $9.50 to $10.50 an hour for production workers and $19 for skilled trades workers. Right now, most Delphi hourly workers make $27 an hour or more.
Delphi also wants the right to sell, close or consolidate any plant and eliminate a jobs bank that gives full pay and benefits to around 4,000 laid-off workers.
The IUE, which represents workers at Warren-based Delphi Packard Electric Systems, has asked Delphi for details on cost savings the company expects from its proposals.
"Delphi's current proposal is totally unreasonable on so many levels," said Henry Reichard, board chairman of the IUE Automotive Conference Board.
Past concessions
He said that the IUE has made concessions in the past. New hires receive less pay than more senior workers, don't have defined-benefit pensions and receive a health care plan with more restrictions and higher co-payments.
In return for those concessions, there "was an understanding that Delphi would keep the promises it made to older employees," Reichard said.
The IUE also has said it has notified court officials that it wants to represent its retirees in Delphi's bankruptcy case.
Delphi said it wants to eliminate medical and life insurance for current and future hourly retirees. The company said it wants to maintain health care for its salaried and management retirees who are not yet 65 and eligible for Medicaid.
Meanwhile, UAW workers in Flint, Mich., have started a petition that asks the bankruptcy judge "to hold the Delphi Corporation accountable to its workers and U.S. taxpayers." It asks that Judge Robert Drain consider Delphi's labor contract agreements as "fair and binding."
The online petition is available at www.thepetitionsite.com. The Web site has recorded about 6,900 signatures. Paper petitions also are being circulated, said Debi Kirchner, one of the Flint workers.
She said she hopes the judge will consider petition because many people have taken the time to sign it. The Flint workers are at a General Motors truck plant but wanted to get involved because they thought it would be wrong for Delphi to try to get out of its obligations to workers and retirees, she said.
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