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Chrysler strike doesn't last a day

UAW guarantees fall short of those for GM.

DETROIT - The United Auto Workers union reached a tentative four-year contract with Chrysler on Wednesday, hours after going on strike and the same day General Motors workers ratified a separate four-year pact.

Next up: Ford.

A person with knowledge of the Chrysler LLC agreement said it includes some guarantees that vehicles will be produced at U.S. factories, a company-funded, union-run trust that will pay much of Chrysler's $18-billion in long-term retiree health care costs, and a lower wage scale for some newly hired workers.

The person, who requested anonymity because the contract has not been ratified by union members, said the new vehicle guarantees are not as extensive as those given by General Motors Corp.

The guarantees, which translate into job security for union workers, are in many cases only for the life of current products, the person said.

The new lower wage scale covers new hires who would replace Chrysler Mopar parts transportation workers. Buyout and early-retirement offers would be made to current workers in an effort to get them to leave, the person said.

The lower wage scale is similar to the one negotiated by GM.

UAW president Ron Gettelfinger said the strike against Chrysler, which is 80.1 percent owned by private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management LP, would end immediately and workers should report for their next available shifts.

"This agreement was made possible because UAW workers made it clear to Chrysler that we needed an agreement that rewards the contributions they have made to the success of this company," Gettelfinger said in a statement.

Gettelfinger wouldn't release any details of the contract, but Chrysler said the tentative deal includes the retiree health care trust. The newly private company didn't say how much money it will contribute to the trust.

Chrysler's national UAW contract covers about 45,000 workers and 78,000 retirees and spouses.

The UAW said its historic contract with GM, which also includes a retiree health care trust, was approved by 66 percent of production workers and 64 percent of skilled trades workers.

The deal, reached Sept. 26 after a two-day nationwide strike, establishes lower pay for some workers and makes promises for future work at U.S. plants.

A majority of Chrysler workers will have to ratify the tentative agreement before it can take effect. Ford will be the final automaker to bargain with the UAW.

Chrysler became a private company shortly after the contract talks began in July. Cerberus bought its share of Chrysler from the former DaimlerChrysler AG in a $7.4-billion transaction in August. Chrysler is now a private company without publicly traded shares.

Chrysler has 24 U.S. manufacturing facilities, including 10 assembly plants. The automaker had already planned to idle five assembly plants and some parts making factories for short stretches during the next two weeks in an effort to adjust its inventory to a slowing U.S. automotive market.

FAST FACTS

The tentative deal

What's new: The agreement between the United Auto Workers and Chrysler includes guarantees that vehicles will be produced at U.S. factories, a retiree health care trust funded by Chrysler and managed by the union, and a lower wage scale for new hires.

What's next: A majority of Chrysler workers will have to ratify the tentative agreement before it can take effect. Buyout and early-retirement offers could be made to current workers.

[Last modified October 11, 2007, 00:38:30]