Ohio: GM News & Info

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 4/4/06 Toledo Blade:


PHOTO: Pickets outside the auditorium make clear their discontent with Delphi's plans to close plants and cut wages.  ( ASSOCIATED PRESS )

PHOTO: Miller

SPEECH IN DETROIT
Delphi CEO urges workers to have faith
50 protesters gather outside; Miller restates pay stance
By JULIE M. McKINNON
BLADE BUSINESS WRITER

DETROIT - Delphi Corp.'s chief understands why workers are upset by proposed pay cuts, but the bankrupt auto supplier cannot survive by shelling out $78 an hour in wages and benefits - three times what competitors give even when organized by the same unions, he said.

Spun off by General Motors Corp. seven years ago, Delphi last week unveiled a bankruptcy reorganization plan that calls for closing or selling 21 of 29 U.S. plants, including those in Adrian and Sandusky, and chopping wages for remaining workers.

...

Contact Julie M. McKinnon at:
jmckinnon@theblade.com or 419-724-6087.

http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060404/BUSINESS02/604040358/-1/RSS04
From the 4/5/06 Youngstown Vindicator:


Delphi Packard: So far, so good
By DON SHILLING
VINDICATOR BUSINESS EDITOR

No news is good news for Delphi Corp.'s local operations.

Delphi has filed a court document that shows how 21 of its plants are losing money in supply contracts with General Motors Corp.

By leaving its Warren-based operations off the list, Delphi reaffirmed that Delphi Packard Electric Systems is better off financially than most of its plants.

...

shilling@vindy.com

http://www.vindy.com/content/local_regional/305741354059317.php

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 4/6/06 Toledo Blade:


Future is up to us, UAW, GM officials tell Toledo parley
By JULIE M. McKINNON
BLADE BUSINESS WRITER

Speculation is rampant about what General Motors Corp. and the United Auto Workers must do to turn the financially troubled automaker around.

But only GM and the UAW - who have formed tighter bonds in recent years to improve quality, save $1 billion a year in health-care costs, and make other strides - will determine what happens, top officials for both sides told more than 175 people yesterday.

...

Contact Julie M. McKinnon at:
jmckinnon@theblade.com or 419-724-6087.

http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060406/BUSINESS02/604060359/-1/RSS04
From the 4/6/06 Akron Beacon Journal:


GM to end third shift at Lordstown
Company won't divulge how many of 1,000 jobs will be eliminated in cost-cutting move
From staff and wire reports

LORDSTOWN - General Motors Corp.'s worldwide cost-cutting reached Lordstown on Wednesday with the elimination of the overnight shift at its car assembly plant.

The company would not specify how many of the 1,000 jobs on the 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. shift would be eliminated when the change takes effect this summer, but said some workers will be moved to other shifts.

...

Beacon Journal business writer Dave Scott contributed to this report.

http://www.ohio.com/mld/ohio/business/14276236.htm?source=rss&channel=ohio_business
From the 4/6/06 Youngstown Vindicator:


Pastor offers service for GM workers
The pastor is leading his church to reach out to the community.
By NANCY TULLIS
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER

AUSTINTOWN — "There's an intricate plan for all those people — God wasn't taken by surprise," the Rev. Dan Tayman, pastor of Bethel Assembly of God told his congregation during a prayer service for General Motors and Delphi employees.

The Rev. Mr. Tayman said when he heard Wednesday morning that the third shift would be cut in June at the GM Assembly Plant in Lordstown, he knew the workers would be the focus of the evening's prayer service.

...

tullis@vindy.com

http://www.vindy.com/content/local_regional/306198006545838.php

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 4/7/06 Youngstown Vindicator:


GM spokesman: Future looks good
This is still a GM town and Valley, the company spokesman says.
By PETER H. MILLIKEN
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF

HOWLAND — General Motors looks forward to a viable future in the Mahoning Valley, despite the impending cancellation of the midnight shift this summer, its spokesman said Thursday.

"We do, indeed, have a proud past, and we really think that we have a very exciting future at Lordstown," said Tom Mock, GM Lordstown communications manager.

...

milliken@vindy.com

http://www.vindy.com/content/local_regional/306668840128167.php
From same:


Business owners prepare to cope with 3rd-shift loss
Some will adjust their hours to accommodate their customers.
By TIM YOVICH
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF

LORDSTOWN — Jesse Cottrill and his partner, Ashley Golden, opened AJ's Country Cafe just a week ago to cater specifically to the General Motors Corp.'s midnight shift.

Business has been terrific for the young couple — the breakfast crowd from GM's assembly and fabricating plants is attracted to the eatery when workers clock out at 7 a.m.

...

yovich@vindy.com

http://www.vindy.com/content/local_regional/327532270058279.php

[buildingcincinnati]

From the AP, 4/8/06:


Ruling lets Delphi offer workers money to retire
Saturday, April 08, 2006
Paulette Chu
ASSOCIATED PRESS
 
NEW YORK — Auto-parts maker Delphi Corp. can offer as many as 13,000 hourly employees lump-sum payments of $35,000 to retire, a bankruptcy judge ruled yesterday, marking a milestone in its effort to scale back staff amid falling production.

Delphi, one of the world’s largest suppliers of auto parts, filed for bankruptcy protection in October and is trying to shed what it says are increasingly unsustainable labor agreements that have left it overstaffed and saddled with costly benefit programs.

...

http://www.dispatch.com/business-story.php?story=dispatch/2006/04/08/20060408-D2-02.html

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 4/9/06 Dayton Daily News:


Delphi wants to drop idle workers
By John Nolan
Dayton Daily News

Delphi Corp.'s latest contract proposal to the United Auto Workers union includes a provision to lay off excess employees in the "jobs bank," a program which pays idled workers full salary and benefits even when there is no work for them to do.

The program is a natural target for Delphi, which has said that reducing hourly labor costs to the lower levels of its competitors is critical to the company's plan to emerge from bankruptcy in 2007.

...

http://www.daytondailynews.com/business/content/business/daily/0409jobsbank.html

[buildingcincinnati]

From the AP, 4/12/06:


SEEKING BUYERS
GM out to keep Delphi running
Wednesday, April 12, 2006
Dee - Ann Durbin
ASSOCIATED PRESS

TROY, Mich. — General Motors Corp.’s top purchasing executive said yesterday that the automaker is trying to help auto-parts supplier Delphi Corp. dispose of noncore businesses by finding buyers for them and contracting with new suppliers for certain parts.

Bo Andersson, GM’s vice president of global purchasing and supply, also confirmed GM is stockpiling parts in case Delphi workers strike, but he wouldn’t offer details of GM’s contingency plan and said the automaker is confident that it can avoid a strike at Delphi, its former parts division and largest supplier.

...

http://www.dispatch.com/business-story.php?story=dispatch/2006/04/12/20060412-D1-03.html
From the 4/12/06 Dayton Daily News:


Unions say Delphi is using court instead of negotiating
The workers are accusing the company of using bankruptcy to break contracts.
By John Nolan
Staff Writer

DAYTON | Delphi Corp.'s labor unions and supporters have begun a political counteroffensive against the auto parts supplier, even as the company awaits a bankruptcy court's permission to cancel contracts with the unions.

The International Union of Electronic Workers-Communications Workers of America is sponsoring newspaper advertisements accusing the company of using the U.S. Bankruptcy Court to break the union's contract and take away wages and benefits, rather than negotiating in good faith for a new labor pact.

...

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2242 or jnolan@daytondailynews.com.
 
http://www.daytondailynews.com/business/content/business/daily/0412delphi.html
From the 4/12/06 Dayton Daily News:


GM, local union reach tentative agreement on Moraine plant
By John Nolan
Staff Writer

MORAINE | General Motors Corp. and the union for hourly workers at its Moraine sport utility vehicle plant have reached tentative agreement on a deal that could ensure new work in upcoming years for the plant, they said Wednesday.

It is subject to ratification by Local 798 of the International Union of Electronic Workers-Communications Workers of America, which represents the plant's hourly work force of about 3,800 production employees.

...

Contact the reporter at (937) 225-2242 or jnolan@daytondailynews.com
 
http://www.daytondailynews.com/business/content/business/daily/0412gmmoraine.html
From the 4/12/06 Warren Tribune Chronicle:


UAW chief hoping to rebound
By LARRY RINGLER Tribune Chronicle

LORDSTOWN — Auto workers at General Motors Corp. Lordstown Complex continue to seek details on incentives to retire or quit, raising hopes the giant factory can rebound from the loss of its third shift, union leaders said Tuesday.

‘‘I think by December, if it takes that long, everyone will be back to work,’’ United Auto Workers Local 1112 President Jim Graham said. He added there may be some layoffs in the short term, depending ‘‘on a lot of variables.’’

...

lringler@tribune-chronicle.com

http://www.tribune-chronicle.com/news/articles.asp?articleID=2554

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 4/13/06 Dayton Daily News:


Deal could bring new work to GM plant
The workers who build SUVs could have work for years under an agreement their union made with GM.
By John Nolan
Staff Writer

MORAINE — General Motors Corp. and the union for hourly workers at its Moraine sport utility vehicle plant have reached tentative agreement on a deal that could ensure new work in upcoming years for the plant, the company and union said Wednesday.

It is subject to ratification by Local 798 of the International Union of Electronic Workers-Communications Workers of America, which represents the plant's hourly work force of about 3,800 production employees.

...

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2242 or jnolan@daytondailynews.com.
 
http://www.daytondailynews.com/business/content/business/daily/0413gmmoraine.html
From the 4/13/06 Dispatch:


GEORGESVILLE ROAD OPERATION
GM, chamber seek buyer for Delphi plant
Thursday, April 13, 2006
Paul Wilson
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
 
General Motors Corp. is working to find buyers for properties that bankrupt Delphi Corp. wants to sell, which might be a good sign for Delphi’s Columbus plant.

Delphi announced last month that the Georgesville Road plant, where 800 people work, was one of 21 that it wants to sell or close in two years.

...

Dispatch reporter Barnet D. Wolf contributed to this story.

paul.wilson@dispatch.com

http://www.dispatch.com/business-story.php?story=dispatch/2006/04/13/20060413-E1-02.html

[buildingcincinnati]

From the AP, 4/14/06:


GM may take $3B charge for retirees' health costs

DETROIT | General Motors Corp. said Thursday that it could take a charge of as much as $3 billion in the first quarter for payments it needs to make to a new health fund for retired workers, according to a filing with federal regulators.

Under a settlement with the United Auto Workers that was approved by a federal judge on March 31, U.S. hourly retirees will pay more for their health care, and active workers and GM will contribute to a fund to help pay health costs.

...

—Associated Press
 
http://www.daytondailynews.com/business/content/business/daily/0414gm.html
From the 4/14/06 Dayton Daily News:


GM deal costs Moraine workers a raise
Tentative accord could keep plant running for six more years; employees to vote on it Thursday
By John Nolan
Staff Writer

MORAINE | A tentative agreement between General Motors Corp. and the union for hourly workers at GM's Moraine Assembly plant will eliminate a wage increase this September and transfer some health care costs to retirees, a union official said Thursday.

The agreement also grants GM requested changes in work rules at the sport utility vehicle plant, said Henry Reichard of the International Union of Electronic Workers-Communications Workers of America.

...

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2242 or jnolan@daytondailynews.com.
 
http://www.daytondailynews.com/business/content/business/daily/0414gmmoraine.html

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 4/15/06 Dayton Daily News:


One-plant system benefits Moraine
Automakers are moving away from multi-plant setups for building certain lines of vehicles.
By John Nolan
Staff Writer

MORAINE — In the unsettled world of the U.S. auto industry, one plant's shutdown is another plant's salvation.

The shutdown of General Motors Corp.'s sport utility vehicle plant in Oklahoma City — along with a proposed new labor agreement at GM's Moraine SUV plant — bolstered Moraine's prospects for making a new line of midsized SUVs.

...

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2242 or jnolan@daytondailynews.com
 
http://www.daytondailynews.com/business/content/business/daily/0415gmmoraine.html

[buildingcincinnati]

From the AP, 4/18/06:


Hedge fund seeks to block key Delphi restructuring plans
Dow Jones/AP

WASHINGTON | A hedge fund run by billionaire investor David Tepper launched a new bid Monday to slow Delphi Corp.'s restructuring plans, asking a judge to bar the company from jettisoning its labor union agreements and its money-losing contracts with General Motors Corp.

The hedge fund, Appaloosa Management LP, said in papers filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan that Delphi hasn't yet provided evidence that its proposals are likely to benefit the company. It said Delphi's request for court approval appeared to be "premature" under the circumstances.

...

http://www.daytondailynews.com/business/content/business/daily/ddn0418delphi.html

[buildingcincinnati]

At least they kept it under $1 billion!:


GM posts another quarterly loss
Dayton Business Journal - 10:18 AM EDT Thursday
 
General Motors Corp., posting a loss for the sixth consecutive quarter, said its first quarter loss narrowed on improvement in its automotive units.

The loss of $323 million, or 57 cents per share, compares with a $1.3 billion loss in the same quarter last year. First quarter revenue rose 14.1 percent to $52.2 billion.

...

E-mail dayton@bizjournals.com. Call 222-6900.

http://www.bizjournals.com/dayton/stories/2006/04/17/daily24.html?from_rss=1

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 4/21/06 Dayton Daily News:


GM keeps quiet on plans to cut costs
Company believes its measures taken to cut costs will save as much as $4 billion in 2006.
By John Nolan
Staff Writer

DAYTON — General Motors Corp. expects its cost-cutting efforts to eventually save it as much as $4 billion this year. But the company is steering clear of going public with specific earnings projections for 2006, because actions that it has undertaken or is considering could cost it billions of dollars.

"With that out there as uncertainties, it would be a mistake for them to put out any estimates," David Cole, chairman of the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Mich., said Thursday.

...

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2242 or jnolan@daytondailynews.com.
 
http://www.daytondailynews.com/business/content/business/daily/0421gmside.html

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 4/22/06 Dayton Daily News:


Workers voting on pact for GM Moraine
Agreement would grant work rule changes, cancel pay raise and require worker pay for health care.
By John Nolan
Staff Writer

MORAINE | Production workers at General Motors Corp.'s Moraine Assembly plant voted Friday on a proposed new labor agreement that union and GM officials have said is critical to the company's decision on whether to assign additional assembly work beyond 2008 to the sport utility vehicle-making factory.

Officials of the International Union of Electronic Workers-Communications Workers of America said they are hopeful that the new contract will be ratified, given its importance to the future of the Moraine plant and GM, which lost $10.6 billion company-wide in 2005.

...
 
http://www.daytondailynews.com/business/content/business/daily/0422gmmoraine.html
From the 4/22/06 Detroit Free Press:


Lavish cruise angers Delphi union
Labor leaders say company shouldn't have planned Caribbean trip while it was announcing job cutbacks to emerge from bankruptcy
By Jason Roberson
Detroit Free Press

DETROIT - On the same day last month that bankrupt Delphi Corp. announced a landmark deal to trim its work force, the auto parts supplier was entertaining hundreds of people on a weeklong trip to three Caribbean islands aboard the lavish Caribbean Princess cruise ship.

Delphi officials say the trip was part of a company rewards program for car dealers and their salespeople to bring in much needed business as it seeks to emerge from bankruptcy. But the ire of Delphi's employees and union leaders was raised when learning of the trip from the Detroit Free Press.

...

http://www.ohio.com/mld/ohio/business/14404237.htm?source=rss&channel=ohio_business

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 4/23/06 Dayton Daily News:


GM workers approve new contract
Local and national proposals could lead to more work for the Moraine Assembly plant.
By Lou Grieco and John Nolan
Staff Writers

Moraine — Workers at General Motors Corp.'s Moraine Assembly plant voted overwhelmingly Friday to ratify new local and national contract proposals, which could lead to GM assigning additional assembly work there in 2008.

Workers voted 1,917 to 734 on the national contract and 1,857 to 785 on the local one, according to results posted Saturday on the Web site for the International Union of Electronic Workers-Communications Workers of America Local 798.

...

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

http://www.daytondailynews.com/business/content/business/daily/0423gm.html
From the 4/23/06 Youngstown Vindicator:


Reflections on the Lordstown Assembly Line

COMING ONTO THE ASSEMbly line at the brand-new General Motors plant shocked Mel Brinsey.

"If I weren't married with kids, I wouldn't have been here two weeks," said Brinsey, who was among a group of workers reflecting recently on the plant's anniversary.

The plant's first car — a Chevrolet Impala — rolled off the line 40 years ago this coming Friday.

...

shilling@vindy.com

http://www.vindy.com/content/local_regional/18241733672910.php

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 4/27/06 Dayton Daily News:


Delphi and union still talking
Union says reports that talks ended were wrong
By John Nolan
Staff Writer

DAYTON — Negotiations with Delphi Corp. are continuing in efforts to reach agreement on new, lower-cost contracts the company says it needs to emerge from bankruptcy reorganization, one of Delphi's unions said Wednesday.

Lauren Asplen, a spokeswoman for the International Union of Electronic Workers-Communications Workers of America, countered published reports earlier on Wednesday that said talks had broken off between her union and Delphi.

...

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2242 or jnolan@daytondailynews.com.
 
http://www.daytondailynews.com/business/content/business/daily/ddn0426delphiweb.html
From the 4/27/06 Warren Tribune-Chronicle:


Delphi continues wage contract negotiations
By staff, wire report

DETROIT — With less than two weeks to go before Delphi Corp. plans to ask a federal judge to cancel its union contracts, the auto supplier is still negotiating with its major unions and General Motors Corp. over wage cuts.

Delphi’s second-largest labor union confirmed Wednesday that it’s still in talks with Delphi. Union executive Robert Sutton, whose office is in Warren, made the comments Wednesday after a media report suggested the International Union of Electronic Workers-Communications Workers of America had broken off talks because no progress was being made.

...

http://www.tribune-chronicle.com/business/articles.asp?articleID=3101

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 4/28/06 Warren Tribune-Chronicle:


Delphi continues wage contract negotiations
By staff, wire report

DETROIT — With less than two weeks to go before Delphi Corp. plans to ask a federal judge to cancel its union contracts, the auto supplier is still negotiating with its major unions and General Motors Corp. over wage cuts.

Delphi’s second-largest labor union confirmed Wednesday that it’s still in talks with Delphi. Union executive Robert Sutton, whose office is in Warren, made the comments Wednesday after a media report suggested the International Union of Electronic Workers-Communications Workers of America had broken off talks because no progress was being made.

...

http://www.tribune-chronicle.com/business/articles.asp?articleID=3101

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 4/29/06 Warren Tribune-Chronicle:


Damage control begins
By LARRY RINGLER Tribune Chronicle

LORDSTOWN — The loss of the overnight shift at General Motors Corp. Lordstown Complex is rippling to nearby suppliers, although a union leader said Friday efforts are being made to limit the damage.

‘‘We’re trying to take care of as many people as we can,’’ United Auto Workers Local 1112 President Jim Graham said.

In a written statement, Intier Seating Systems-Lordstown said it has informed its work force of a permanent layoff due to reduced production by its customer.

...

lringler@tribune-chronicle.com

http://www.tribune-chronicle.com/business/articles.asp?articleID=3208
From same:


GM cuts back at top levels
By staff, wire report

DETROIT — General Motors Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Rick Wagoner’s 2005 compensation was cut by almost half as the automaker lost billions of dollars and its credit rating was slashed to junk status, according to a proxy statement filed Friday with federal regulators.

Wagoner received a package worth nearly $5.5 million in 2005, 46 percent lower than the $10 million package he received in 2004.

Wagoner’s salary remained at $2.2 billion, unchanged since 2003. He received no bonus for the year, compared to a $2.5 million bonus in 2004. He was granted 400,000 stock options with a current value of $2.8 million. In 2004, his 400,000 stock options had a value of $5.1 million.

...

http://www.tribune-chronicle.com/business/articles.asp?articleID=3205

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 4/30/06 Warren Tribune Chronicle:


Analysts say GM woes not over
By LARRY RINGLER Tribune Chronicle

LORDSTOWN — ‘‘Lordstown plant jobs in jeopardy.’’ ‘‘GM may close Lordstown, Ohio, plant to trim small-car losses.’’

The obituary for the General Motors Corp. Lordstown auto complex has been written many times, so far prematurely.

But as 6,000 hourly and salaried employees return to work Monday after a week’s shutdown — ironically covering the plant’s 40th anniversary Friday — due to an oversupply of Chevrolet Cobalt small cars, leaders and analysts are keenly aware the complex faces a rough road.

...

lringler@tribune-chronicle.com

http://www.tribune-chronicle.com/business/articles.asp?articleID=3248

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 5/1/06 Dayton Daily News:


GM announces new manager at Moraine plant
By John Nolan
Staff Writer

MORAINE | General Motors Corp. announced a new manager for its Moraine Assembly plant on Monday, as part of a management shuffle which affected five plants in Ohio, Michigan, Texas and Canada.

Pamela Mader, manager at Moraine since 2001, is the new boss at GM's Orion Assembly plant about 40 miles north of Detroit. That plant produces the Pontiac G6, a midsize sedan.

...

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2242 or jnolan@daytondailynews.com.
 
http://www.daytondailynews.com/business/content/business/daily/0501gmmanageweb.html

[buildingcincinnati]

From the AP, 5/2/06:


Delphi wants court to act
BY DEE-ANN DURBIN | THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

DETROIT - Auto parts supplier Delphi Corp. said in a filing Monday that a federal bankruptcy court can immediately cancel its labor agreements instead of allowing Delphi to cancel them on its own, an action that could lead to a strike.

The legal filing Monday boosts the stakes in Delphi's battle with its unions.

...

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060502/BIZ/605020319/1076/rss01

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 5/3/06 Warren Tribune Chronicle:


GM extends its attrition deadline
By LARRY RINGLER Tribune Chronicle

LORDSTOWN — General Motors Corp.’s extension Monday of its attrition plan will give workers more time to make a critical lifestyle decision, union leaders said Tuesday.

‘‘It was just too short of a time frame to make a decision. The extension gives them more time,’’ United Auto Workers Local 1112 President Jim Graham said of the extension to June 23, with seven days to change their mind.

...

lringler@tribune-chronicle.com

http://www.tribune-chronicle.com/business/articles.asp?articleID=3345
Somewhat related:


West Carrollton parts plant to lay off 115
By Kristin McAllister
Staff Writer

WEST CARROLLTON — Automotive parts supplier Johnson Controls Inc. said Tuesday it will permanently lay off 115 third-shift employees at the company's West Carrollton plant on June 30.

The Milwaukee-based company employs 114,000 people in its Auto Parts group.

...
 
http://www.daytondailynews.com/business/content/business/daily/0503warn.html

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 5/4/06 Dayton Daily News:


UAW calls for vote to authorize strike at Delphi plants
By Tom Krisher
Contributing Writer

DETROIT | The union representing the majority of hourly workers at Delphi Corp. on Wednesday asked its locals to take a strike authorization vote, further pressuring the auto parts supplier as it seeks wage cuts.

United Auto Workers Vice President Richard Shoemaker called for the vote in an e-mail to all Delphi local presidents, UAW spokesman Paul Krell said Wednesday.

...
 
http://www.daytondailynews.com/business/content/business/daily/0504delphi.html

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 5/5/06 Warren Tribune Chronicle:


Union works to save GM jobs
By LARRY RINGLER Tribune Chronicle

LORDSTOWN — The number of excess workers at General Motors Corp.’s Lordstown Complex could be 150 to 200, instead of 725, as employees continue to take buyouts, a union leader said Thursday.

United Auto Workers Local 1112 President Jim Graham also said union leaders are trying to work out a deal so idled workers go directly into a job bank, where they’ll get full pay and benefits, instead of being laid off at reduced compensation.

...

lringler@tribune-chronicle.com

http://www.tribune-chronicle.com/news/articles.asp?articleID=3471

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 5/7/06 Dayton Daily News:


Delphi has UAW leader arrested, he says
The union president said the action followed a complaint about safety and shutdown of a line.
By John Nolan
Staff Writer

DAYTON — The president of United Auto Workers Local 696 said Delphi Corp. had him arrested on a trespassing charge and suspended the union's shop chairman, a day after the union complained of an unsafe workplace and shut down an operation in Delphi's Needmore Road brake plant.

Tuesday in New York, a federal bankruptcy judge will hear Delphi's request to cancel the contracts with its labor unions unless they agree to lower-cost contracts the auto parts company says it needs to get out of bankruptcy reorganization. Members of UAW Local 696 are to vote today on whether to authorize the national union to call a strike if it cannot reach a contract with Delphi.

...

http://www.daytondailynews.com/localnews/content/localnews/daily/0507delphi.html
From the 5/7/06 Warren Tribune Chronicle:


Delphi’s showdown at hand
By LARRY RINGLER Tribune Chronicle

WARREN — Local union leader Don Arbogast doesn’t mince words about a strike if a bankruptcy judge lets Delphi Corp. reject its labor agreements and change retiree health care and life insurance.

‘‘There will be (a strike). It’s that simple,’’ said the official with Local 717 of the International Union of Electrical Workers-Communications Workers of America, Delphi’s second largest union with 8,500 members.

...

lringler@tribune-chronicle.com

http://www.tribune-chronicle.com/news/articles.asp?articleID=3591

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 5/8/06 Youngstown Vindicator:


Delphi hearings extended by a day
Negotiations are expected to resume when this week's hearings are completed.
By DON SHILLING
VINDICATOR BUSINESS EDITOR

Court hearings on whether to cancel Delphi Corp.'s labor contracts have been extended to allow for more testimony.

Lawyers for the auto parts supplier and its unions decided two days of testimony — Tuesday and Wednesday — weren't enough, so Friday has been added as a hearing day.

Three days may not even be enough because of the complexity of the issues, said Lauren Asplen, a spokeswoman for the International Union of Electrical Workers.

...

shilling@vindy.com

http://www.vindy.com/content/local_regional/287584167624765.php
From the 5/8/06 Dayton Daily News:


UAW at Delphi gives OK to call strike
Workers give their approval for the job action if the two sides cannot reach a pact.
By Kristin McAllister
Staff Writer

DAYTON — Nearly 400 members of the United Auto Workers Local 696 voted Sunday to authorize their national union to call a strike if it cannot reach a contract with Delphi Corp.

"The membership fully realizes that a strike would be devastating to all concerned, but it has resigned itself that that probably will happen," said Joe Buckley, president of Local 696, which represents Delphi's Needmore Road brake plant's hourly workers.

...

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-9338 or kmcallister@DaytonDailyNews.com.
 
http://www.daytondailynews.com/business/content/business/daily/0508delphi.html
From same:


Delphi to hire despite labor woes
Dayton Business Journal - May 5, 2006
by Tracy Kershaw-Staley
DBJ Staff Reporter
 
Bankrupt auto parts maker Delphi Corp., which is looking to shed thousands of workers nationwide, is hiring temporary workers at its Needmore Road plant.

The company is adding employees to replace workers who take retirement incentives designed to help the company dump labor costs.

Delphi began taking referrals for new workers from current employees April 24, according to United Auto Workers Local 696, which represents workers at the Dayton plant. The temporary workers will be paid $14 per hour with no benefits, according to the union and Lindsey Williams, company spokesman. Most Delphi workers average about $25 per hour.

...

E-mail tkershaw-staley@bizjournals.com. Call 222-6900, ext. 116.

http://dayton.bizjournals.com/dayton/stories/2006/05/08/story3.html

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 5/9/06 Springfield News-Sun:


Delphi will ask court to approve plan to void union contracts
By John Nolan, Staff Writer

Delphi Corp. asks a federal bankruptcy judge today for permission to cancel contracts with its hourly labor unions if they cannot reach agreement with the company on lower-cost agreements it says it needs to be competitive.

The unions are opposing Delphi's request, which comes even as all parties continue negotiating to try to work out the reduced labor costs the auto parts company says it must have to emerge from bankruptcy reorganization in 2007.

...

http://www.springfieldnewssun.com/news/content/news/stories/2006/05/09/sns0509delphiinside.html
From the 5/9/06 Dayton Daily News:


Delphi disciplines officials from union
Deck headlines should summarize the story and use articles, conjunctions and punctuation.
By John Nolan
Staff Writer

DAYTON — Delphi Corp. on Monday disciplined three more officials of United Auto Workers Local 696 at the company's Dayton brake plant in response to a work stoppage in part of the factory last week, the union said.

Joe Buckley, president of UAW Local 696, said the company placed a union shop steward on indefinite suspension and was planning to take similar action against two other stewards.

...

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2242 or jnolan@DaytonDailyNews.com.
 
http://www.daytondailynews.com/business/content/business/daily/0509delphi.html

[buildingcincinnati]

From the AP, 5/10/06:


Delphi says it must void contracts
Auto-parts maker tells judge its survival’s at stake
Wednesday, May 10, 2006
Adam Geller
ASSOCIATED PRESS
 
NEW YORK — Auto-parts supplier Delphi Corp. told a bankruptcy judge yesterday that it must be given the right to cancel its labor contracts, saying that is critical to the cost-cutting efforts required for its survival.

Delphi, seeking power that could lead to a devastating strike, told Judge Robert Drain that it has little choice.

...

http://www.dispatch.com/business-story.php?story=dispatch/2006/05/10/20060510-D1-02.html
From same:


General Motors CEO says strike is bad idea
GM has plans for a lot more restructuring, the chairman said.

DETROIT (AP) — General Motors Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Rick Wagoner said Tuesday that the world's biggest automaker has stockpiled parts in case Delphi Corp. workers go on strike but he believes a strike can be avoided.

"I'm really not a strong advocate of relying on that as a potential solution here. We would rather do this proactively and without strikes," Wagoner said. "We do have some banks of parts, but we're speaking a matter of days, not months, so it's not a question of avoiding the issue for any significant period of time."

...

http://www.vindy.com/content/local_regional/286301594189512.php
From the 5/10/06 Youngstown Vindicator:


IUE lawyer: We aren't the UAW
Union and company lawyers argued about Delphi's labor contracts.
By DON SHILLING
VINDICATOR BUSINESS EDITOR

NEW YORK — The union that represents Delphi Corp. workers in the Mahoning Valley is tired of feeling ignored.

A lawyer for the International Union of Electrical Workers argued in court Tuesday that Delphi should give it a unique contract offer — not one based on an offer to the United Auto Workers.

...

shilling@vindy.com

http://www.vindy.com/content/local_regional/286301593923829.php

[buildingcincinnati]

From the AP, 5/11/06:


Unions argue against Delphi request to dump contracts
Executive tells federal bankruptcy judge that auto parts company must cut labor costs to survive
By Adam Geller
Associated Press

NEW YORK - Lawyers for Delphi Corp.'s unions and stakeholders tried to convince a bankruptcy judge Wednesday that letting the faltering auto parts company jettison its labor contracts would unfairly sideline them and risk a potentially ruinous strike.

But a Delphi executive countered that the power to cancel contracts -- even if it triggers a walkout in coming months -- is better than prolonging a staredown with the company's unions that could further weaken its chances of survival.

...

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/ohio/business/14552000.htm?source=rss&channel=ohio_business

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 5/12/06 Warren Tribune Chronicle:


Delphi returns to court
By LARRY RINGLER Tribune Chronicle

NEW YORK — After a sometimes raucous first day Tuesday — largely thanks to United Auto Workers’ fiery attorney Bruce Simon — the hearing Delphi Corp.’s motion to reject its labor contracts has settled into a more lawyerly rhythm heading into today’s third round.

University of Pennsylvania economics professor Michael Wachter, who compared the wage premium paid to Delphi workers to similar industrial workers, is scheduled to continue testimony he began late Wednesday.

...

lringler@tribune-chronicle.com

http://www.tribune-chronicle.com/news/articles.asp?articleID=3776
From same:


Waiting too risky for Delphi
By LARRY RINGLER Tribune Chronicle

NEW YORK — Auto parts maker Delphi Corp. could better handle a strike this summer than in the fall of 2007 when its labor contracts expire — one reason the bankrupt company is seeking a judge’s permission to reject its agreements now, a company executive said Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the attorney for the union representing workers at Warren’s Delphi Packard said a roughly $60 million bonus plan for some 14,000 salaried workers that could be announced around the same time hourly workers would be taking steep pay cuts makes it harder for the union and company to reach agreement.

...

lringler@tribune-chronicle.com

http://www.tribune-chronicle.com/news/articles.asp?articleID=3748
From the AP, 5/12/06:


Delphi workers ready to strike
Early votes show unions to give UAW go-ahead if judge voids contract
Friday, May 12, 2006
Tom Krisher
Associated Press

Detroit - The voting's not done, but so far there's little doubt that Delphi Corp. production workers will give the United Auto Workers authority to call a strike if a bankruptcy judge voids their contract with the struggling auto supplier.

Workers at a half-dozen plants where the votes already have been counted have overwhelmingly favored allowing a strike, and local union officials say they expect the same results in voting that will take place until Sunday at 22 Delphi plants represented by the UAW.

...

http://www.cleveland.com/business/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/business/1147431312286040.xml&coll=2
From the 5/12/06 Springfield News-Sun:


Delphi strike could affect Navistar
Troubled parts maker is a major supplier of local plant.
By Tim Bucey
News-Sun Staff Writer

A labor disruption at auto parts maker Delphi Corporation would have a detrimental effect on Navistar International, including the International Truck and Engine assembly plant in Springfield, company officials said Thursday.

“A work stoppage on the part of Delphi would have a serious impact ... because they are a major supplier to us,” said Roy Wiley, Navistar director of communications in Warrenville, Ill.

...

http://www.springfieldnewssun.com/news/content/news/stories/2006/05/12/SNS0512internationalDelphi.html

[buildingcincinnati]

From the 5/13/06 Warren Tribune Chronicle:


More Delphi hearings set for May 24
By LARRY RINGLER Tribune Chronicle

NEW YORK — Out of the courtroom and back to the negotiating room, with the goal of settling some issues before hearings resume May 24 on Delphi Corp.’s effort to dissolve its union contracts.

That’s the scenario the judge, along with company and union representatives, laid out Friday at the end of the third day of hearings at federal bankruptcy court in Lower Manhattan.

...

lringler@tribune-chronicle.com

http://www.tribune-chronicle.com/news/articles.asp?articleID=3811