KEY POINTS:
General Motors will shift responsibility for healthcare liabilities for its retired union workers to a new trust fund in 2010 and put US$24.1 billion ($32 billion) into that fund by the start of next year.
The United Auto Workers said on Friday that the total GM commitment to the fund was now nearly US$30 billion.
That will take more than US$50 billion of liability for retiree health care off GM's books. The details of the healthcare trust, seen as the centrepiece of a new four-year labour contract between the UAW and GM reached last week, were contained in a union publication for its 73,000 members working at GM.
UAW President Ron Gettelfinger said he hoped to have the GM agreement ratified by the automaker's workers by October 10.
The union's local unit leaders unanimously approved the tentative four-year contract, following a meeting in Detroit.
Reaching the deal ended a two-day national strike by GM's UAW-represented workers. The deal needs to be ratified by a majority of the 73,000 workers.
According to the contract GM will provide US$24.1 billion in January to the new UAW-aligned health-care trust, known as a Voluntary Employee Beneficiary Association.
Also, GM has agreed to a "total moratorium on outsourcing" and committed to product investment in 16 union-represented plants, according to the document. The automaker has the option to close three more US plants, however.
- Reuters
