General Motors offered striking union members wage increases or lump-sum payments in all four years of a proposed contract, as the walkout continued in its third week. But union bargainers rejected the offer, according to a person briefed on the negotiations.
Both sides are hoping the strike doesn’t last much longer, but while bargaining continues, the top union negotiator says they’re far apart on major issues including wages, job security, health care and a path for temporary workers to become full-time.
The strike against General Motors by the United Auto Workers is playing out amid a corruption scandal inside the UAW that has caused distrust of the union leadership among many rank-and-file members.
One of the main sticking points is health care. GM is looking to cut its costs, but workers say they shouldn’t have to pay more when the company is making billions in profit.
Negotiators for General Motors and the United Auto Workers took a break from bargaining around 9 p.m. Monday but headed back at to the tables on Tuesday as a strike by more than 49,000 employees extended into a second day.
A strike by over 49,000 United Auto workers against General Motors could have been averted had the company made its latest offer sooner, the union’s top negotiator said in a letter to the company.
About 1,100 workers have been on strike since early February, and the refinery has been run by non-union supervisors and replacement workers.
The maker of Twinkies and Ding Dongs said late Tuesday that it failed to reach an agreement with its second-biggest union. As a result, Hostess plans to continue with a hearing on Wednesday in which a bankruptcy court judge will decide if the company can close its operations.
Hostess Brands Inc. said Friday it will close all of its plants, leading to the loss of hundreds of jobs in Indiana and thousands more nationwide. The company employs 288 in Indianapolis.
Hostess Brands said it likely won't make an announcement until Friday morning on whether it will move to liquidate its business, after the company had set a Thursday deadline for striking employees to return to work.
Members of United Auto Workers Local 933, which represents roughly 1,500 hourly workers, could declare a strike if negotiators do not reach an agreement with Allison Transmission by a Wednesday deadline.
A Hostess spokesman said the company is debating whether it will close its Indiana plants after workers went on strike on Friday. Hostess employs about 875 workers in Indiana, including 288 in Indianapolis.
The NFL and the players' union decided Thursday to keep the current collective bargaining agreement in place for an additional 24 hours so that negotiations can continue.
The worst case scenario — no season — would mean the city of Indianapolis sustaining the most expensive hit in league history.
Union members have approved a new contract that ends a strike by more than 700 workers at a Bemis Co. plant in Terre Haute
after 40 days.
