Challenging weeks ahead for Delphi Packard and workers

There can be no doubt that the next five weeks are going to be filled with tough negotiating between Delphi Corp. and the International Union of Electrical Workers, which represents about 5,000 employees of Delphi Packard Electric Systems here.
Both sides have now taken action that sets the stage for a showdown: union members authorized a strike and the company asked the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for permission to abrogate its contracts with the unions.
Delphi also proposed wage and benefit cuts and announced that its plan for emerging from bankruptcy involves closing or selling 21 manufacturing sites in North America by Jan. 1, 2008, and cutting its union work force from 34,000 to 12,000.
That's devastating news for many of those communities and for thousands of workers at those plants.
Cause for hope her
But in the Mahoning Valley, the news offered hope of saving operations at the former Packard Electric Division of General Motors, at least to the extent that Delphi Packard can continue to develop, produce and sell its products in an increasing competitive world market.
The last thing either side should want is the kind of showdown that would come with the abrogation of the contract and the almost inevitable strike. Delphi Packard has 5,000 employees in and near Warren. They have their jobs because the company has continued to provide high-value, high-quality electrical components to General Motors and other U.S. and foreign automakers.
A strike would force those companies to seek other suppliers, and there would be no guarantee that those customers would return when the strike was over.
Inevitably, whatever share of the parts market Packard hoped to keep would be reduced; whatever number of jobs may have been saved in Warren would shrink.
It would certainly be to the benefit of everyone in the Mahoning Valley if all Delphi Packard workers -- white collar and blue -- continued to receive the wages and benefits they have now. Delphi and General Motors are a driving force in the Valley's economy. But that isn't realistic.
Changes -- and, unfortunately, that means cuts at some level -- are inevitable. Negotiations have been unproductive thus far, but both sides must return to the table this week and begin to hammer out a compromise. The deadline is looming. Judge Robert Drain will rule on the contract issue sometime after May 10.