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United Auto Workers' 11 a.m. EDT strike deadline loomed more than continuing labor-contract talks among the union and Chrysler on Wednesday morning.
Negotiators worked by way of the evening at Chrysler's headquarters in Auburn Hills, Mich., according to the Connected Press, but numerous crucial problems remained unresolved.
The UAW lately completed similar negotiations with Chrysler's counterpart, Common Motors , but not ahead of workers walked off the job for two days.
If an agreement is not reached with Chrysler on Wednesday morning, 49,000 workers could leave their jobs at 24 U.S. plants, but negotiations could still be extended further.
Representatives of Chrysler and the UAW could not immediately be reached for comment.
Observers say Chrysler could simply weather a short strike because its inventory levels are too high and a work stoppage could assist the firm remedy that. A longer strike would be a threat to the company's cash position.
Chrysler was not too long ago sold by its former German parent firm, Daimler , to private-equity giant Cerberus Capital Management. It really is no longer traded publicly, but its negotiations with the UAW could have implications for the No. 2 U.S. automaker, Ford .
Meanwhile, the UAW is anticipated to announce Wednesday that a majority of its GM workers voted to ratify its tentative agreement on a labor contract. The two parties agreed to set up a union-controlled health care trust fund, or VEBA. It also established a two-tier wage structure, enabling the business to spend new hires at a decrease price that is far more comparable to its foreign-primarily based competitors.
The VEBA will be expensive for GM in the close to term as the it shells out cash to finance the fund, but in the extended run, it promises to cost-free the organization from the crushing burden of its health care payments to retirees. That will reduce GM's borrowing charges and enhance the profitability of its auto operations, enabling the business a lot more leeway to invest in new merchandise and grow to be a far more formidable competitor.
Talks at Chrysler are centered on how considerably the automaker would pay to finance a VEBA. It has an estimated $18 billion in unfunded retiree well being care costs. The automaker also is trying to get overall health care concessions from the UAW that have been currently granted to GM and Ford.
The UAW is seeking production guarantees at U.S. plants to preserve union jobs. auto engine for sale
