Goodyear, Steelworkers reach deal on contract

[rickaren]

Goodyear, Steelworkers reach deal on contract

Posted Monday, Aug 31, 2009, 11:55 am in Employee News

Thousands of workers at Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. plants in seven states will vote in the coming days on a tentative national contract agreement, the Associated Press reported.

The United Steelworkers of America and the company reached the deal Saturday night about three hours before a midnight deadline for the expiration of the old three-year contract, which had been extended twice, the AP said. The union said rank-and-file members will be briefed on the new contract, and ratification votes will be scheduled at all plants, the new service said.

Wayne Ranick, a spokesman with the union headquarters in Pittsburgh, told the AP that he couldn’t provide any details on whether the four-year agreement preserved union jobs or kept open the seven plants covered by the deal. Ranick, who talked to union negotiators, said Steelworker leaders were mindful of the difficult economy that was a backdrop to the contract talks, the story said.

The talks, which began in June, covered about 10,300 steelworkers at seven Goodyear plants in the U.S, the AP said. The steelworkers had made job security their top priority in talks covering workers in Akron, Ohio; Buffalo, N.Y.; Danville, Va.; Fayetteville, N.C.; Gadsden, Ala.; Topeka, Kan., and Union City, Tenn., the story said.

The goals of Akron, Ohio-based Goodyear were improved productivity and flexibility. Jim Allen, the company’s chief negotiator, said they were accomplished, the story said. (Associated Press)