UAW Authorizes Strike Against Delphi

In this March 22, 2006, file photo, Delphi's World Headquarters is shown in Troy, Mich. United Auto Workers members have voted to authorize a strike against auto parts supplier Delphi Corp., adding a new threat to already tense negotiations between the two sides and Delphi's former parent and largest customer General Motors Corp. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File) (Carlos Osorio - AP)

DETROIT -- United Auto Workers members have voted to authorize a strike against auto supplier Delphi Corp. if the company fails to honor its labor agreements, an action that could have severe consequences for Delphi and its largest customer, General Motors Corp.

More than 95 percent of UAW members who voted at 21 U.S. plants approved the strike authorization measure, the union said Tuesday. The vote doesn't mean a strike is imminent, but it does allow the union to call a strike if it feels one is needed as the two sides bargain over wages.

Delphi spokesman Lindsey Williams said the company intends to keep negotiating with the UAW.

"Their strike authorization vote doesn't change our strategy, and that strategy remains to get a consensual agreement with all of our unions and GM," Williams said.

GM also said it will keep negotiating despite the vote. GM, Delphi's former parent, has already offered to fund buyouts for some Delphi hourly workers and could also be on the hook for retiree benefits or supplemental payments to boost wages.

"We are committed to reaching a consensual agreement with Delphi and with its unions, and the vote today does not change our commitment to trying to reach that agreement," GM spokesman Jerry Dubrowski said.

GM's shares fell 67 cents, or about 2.5 percent, to close at $25.53 on the New York Stock Exchange after word of the strike vote. Delphi's shares no longer trade on the NYSE.

The UAW is by far the largest of Delphi's six unions, representing 24,000 of the company's 33,000 U.S. hourly workers. The International Union of Electronic Workers-Communications Workers of America, which represents 8,000 workers, also has voted to authorize a strike.

The United Steelworkers, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, which represent more than 1,100 Delphi workers, said Tuesday they haven't scheduled strike votes. Messages were left seeking comment with Delphi's other union, the International Union of Operating Engineers, which represents around 20 workers.

The strike votes give Delphi's unions more weight in ongoing wage negotiations. Delphi, which filed for bankruptcy protection in October, has proposed cutting its U.S. hourly workers' wages from $27 an hour to $16.50 an hour, or as low as $12.50 an hour if GM doesn't agree to supplement those wages.

Delphi was in U.S. Bankruptcy Court last week asking for permission to cancel its labor contracts after it failed to reach a deal with its unions and GM. Judge Robert Drain isn't expected to rule until next month, and even if he allows Delphi to cancel its agreements, the company could keep its contracts in place while negotiations continue.

The union says it will call a strike "should Delphi use its bankruptcy court proceedings to unilaterally impose changes to the UAW-Delphi collective bargaining agreements."