Auto Union Says It Is Far From A Deal With Delphi, GM

The United Auto Workers union said March 9 it is still far from reaching an agreement with General Motors Corp and its bankrupt former parts subsidiary Delphi Corp. over Delphi's restructuring plan. "The parties are not close to working out such an agreement," the UAW said in a statement. "There are many, many significant issues to be resolved."

The UAW was responding to local media reports that it had an outline of an agreement to discuss with members at a meeting next week. The Wall Street Journal reported March 8 that Delphi was preparing to give one-time payouts of $25,000 to $50,000 in exchange for lower wages and benefits. The Detroit Free Press has reported that GM was preparing to offer early retirement buyouts to 20,000 workers to make room to rehire union members laid off as part of Delphi's restructuring plan.

The union confirmed that a retirement incentive program was under discussion but said, "there are significant issues still to be resolved."

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2006