Delphi Reaches Labor Deal With Union

Monday, August 6th 2007, 7:20 am

By: News On 6

DETROIT (AP) _ Delphi Corp. cleared another hurdle in its efforts to emerge from bankruptcy proceedings when a key union ended a strike threat and tentatively agreed to a four-year contract.

The two sides reached the revised labor agreement about 10 p.m. Sunday, the International Union of Electronic Workers-Communications Workers of America said in a news release.

The Communications Workers' industrial branch said that its members will hold a ratification vote by mail. The union represents about 2,000 Delphi employees.

``We have provided significant and meaningful options for our members as they strive to survive this difficult period,'' said Jim Clark, president of IUE-CWA. ``Our local leaders who make up the National Bargaining Committee made the best out of what was a deplorable situation.''

Troy, Mich.-based Delphi is the former parts division of General Motors Corp., which spun it off in 1999 and has struggled on its own. It entered bankruptcy protection in October 2005.

The company recently secured concessions from the United Auto Workers, its largest union and representative for about 16,000 Delphi employees, to cut labor costs. The Delphi-UAW deal slashes wages for longtime workers from $27 per hour to a range of $14 to $18.50 an hour.

Delphi leaders say they hope to emerge from bankruptcy by the end of the year.

On Thursday, a bankruptcy court agreed to let Appaloosa Management LP and other investors inject up to $2.55 billion into Delphi.

The agreement with the IUE-CWA includes ``an array of choices ranging from retirement options to buyouts and buy downs that allow our members to make the best decision for themselves and their families,'' Clark said.

On July 20, the union said that it planned to terminate its contracts, a first step toward a possible strike in October.

The IUE-CWA has workers at three plants that Delphi plans to keep _ including Warren, Ohio, and Brookhaven and Clinton, Miss. _ as well as at three the company plans to sell or close, including Kettering and Moraine, Ohio, and Gadsden, Ala.

The union did not release details of the agreement.