Delphi reaches a labor deal with UAW

DETROIT — Struggling auto parts maker Delphi Corp. reached a tentative wage-cutting agreement Friday with its largest union in what may set the pattern for future pay in the U.S. automotive parts industry.

The deal, which still must be voted on by Delphi members of the United Auto Workers, was signed just before a 1 p.m. meeting between the UAW leadership and presidents of the union’s locals.

Delphi has about 6,000 workers in Ohio. This includes less than 700 hourly workers at Delphi Packard Electric in the Mahoning Valley.

The local workers are represented by the International Union of Electrical Workers, which is Delphi’s second-largest union. The IUE typically reaches a deal with the company after the UAW agrees to terms.

Details of the UAW agreement were not released, but Delphi said in a statement it’s a “significant milestone” in the company’s quest to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.Union officials speaking on condition they not be identified by name earlier this week because the deal had not yet been completed said the pact would cut wages for longtime UAW workers from around $27 per hour to between $14 and $18.50.