Ron Gettelfinger news stories on Newser

UAW Overwhelmingly Backs GM Concessions

Fri, 29 May 2009 12:56:29 CDT

United Auto Workers members have ratified a package of concessions designed to reduce General Motors' labor costs. Union president Ron Gettelfinger said today 74% of GM's production and skilled-trade workers voted in favor. The vote comes before the company's expected Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection filing Monday. Bankruptcy experts say having...

UAW, Republicans Blame Each Other on Bailout

Kevin Spak — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 11:21:39 CST

The UAW and opponents of the failed Detroit bailout blamed each other today for the impasse, the New York Times reports. GOP Sen. Bob Corker says the rescue plan could have been salvaged if the UAW had listened to him. "I offered him a solution," he said of UAW chief...

Obama: Dark Days Ahead, but Cultural Focus Will Re-Emerge

Katherine Thompson — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 11:07:00 CST

Barack Obama stressed that the economy will see darker times before things turn around, but promised in a Meet the Press interview that his White House will bring back a focus on culture and science. The president-elect also vowed to kick his smoking habit for good. Elsewhere on the talk...

UAW Bends to Boost Bailout

Ambreen Ali — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 14:09:39 CST

The United Auto Workers agreed today to concessions that may help Detroit get $34 billion in federal assistance, the Detroit News reports. The union’s job bank—which pays eliminated employees 95% of their base salaries—will be suspended, and the UAW will delay billions in payments to its health care...

Auto Worker Powerhouse Doug Fraser Dead at 91

Laurel Jorgensen — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 02:47:19 CST

Former United Auto Workers president Doug Fraser, who played a vital role in saving Chrysler from bankruptcy, died yesterday at age 91. The cause of death was unknown, but Fraser had been suffering from emphysema, the Detroit Free Press reports. As UAW president during the ’70s and ’80s, Fraser helped...

UAW Ratifies Chrysler Contract

Nick McMaster — Sat, 27 Oct 2007 11:07:52 CDT

The UAW said today that its employees had approved a four-year contract with Chrysler by the thinnest of margins, the Wall Street Journal reports. The union said 56% of production workers and 51% of skilled trade workers voted in favor of the deal, despite significant dissent among workers. The UAW...

UAW Shifts to Hard-Up Ford

Peter Fearon — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 04:30:34 CDT

With the United Auto Workers close to ratifying their contract with Chrysler, the union is shifting focus to hammering out a deal with Ford. Negotiations with Ford may prove the toughest of all because Ford is the domestic car maker most in need of cuts, reports the Wall Street Journal...

OK on Chrysler Pact ThisClose

Peter Fearon — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 03:38:02 CDT

Auto workers at four Chrysler plants voted by significant margins to approve a new labor contract yesterday, increasing the likelihood of final ratification by the company's 45,000 workers, despite rejection at several plants. The last vote, at a small-car plant in Illinois that employs 3,000 workers, is scheduled...

Struggle to Ratify Chrysler Deal

Peter Fearon — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 03:05:00 CDT

The proposed contract between Chrysler and the United Auto Workers has caused some division within the union and may not be ratified as quickly as the deal with General Motors, reports the Detroit Free Press . The council of local leaders who voted to approve it yesterday in Detroit were not...