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- Pogba hungry to have his football cake after doping ban
- India and Canada expel top envoys in Sikh separatist killing row
- Mbappe says victim of 'fake news' after 'rape' report in Sweden
- Lebanon says 21 killed in strike on northern village
- Netanyahu vows no mercy after deadly Hezbollah drone strike
- Russia could be able to attack NATO by 2030: German intelligence
- EVs seek to regain sales momentum at Paris Motor Show
- Clarke backs Scotland to bounce back from 'tough' run
- Harris, Trump target crucial Pennsylvania as US vote looms
- NASA probe Europa Clipper lifts off for Jupiter's icy moon
- Lebanese Red Cross says 18 killed in strike in north
- Mendy borrowed money from Man City team-mates for legal fees
- Palestinian officials say Israeli forces kill two in West Bank
- Football leagues, unions file EU complaint against FIFA in calendar dispute
- Nigeria boycott AFCON qualifier in Libya after 'inhumane treatment'
- India to recall top envoy to Canada: foreign ministry
- Hezbollah, Israeli troops in 'violent clashes' after drone strike
- China insists won't renounce 'use of force' to take Taiwan as drills end
- Painkiller sale plan to US gives France major headache
- Italy begins landmark migrant transfers to Albania
- Russia jails French researcher for three years
- 'Unsustainable' housing crisis bedevils Spain's socialist govt
- Stocks shrug off China disappointment but oil slides
- New Zealand 4-0 up in America's Cup but British show signs of life
- Russian prosecutor demands 3 years prison for French researcher
- 'Innocent' British nerve agent victim caught in global murder plot: inquiry
- Afghan Taliban vow to implement media ban on images of living things
- Russian prosecutor demands 3 years, 3 months jail for French researcher
- England ready for Pakistan's spin assault in second Test
- New Zealand's Ravindra excited for India Tests with father in crowd
- India's capital bans fireworks to curb air pollution
- Stocks diverge, oil retreats as China disappoints markets
- FIFA to open 'global dialogue' on transfer system after Diarra ruling
- Trio wins economics Nobel for work on wealth inequality
- Starmer vows to cut red tape as he urges foreign investors to 'back' UK
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- 'Not viable': Barcelona turns against surging tourism
- Hezbollah says targeted Israeli naval base after deadly drone strike
- Rice praises 'unbelievable' England interim boss Carsley despite uncertainty
- Nepali teenager hailed as hero after climbing world's 8,000m peaks
- England captain Stokes back from injury for second Pakistan Test
- Shanghai stocks gain after stimulus briefing as markets rally
- Shanghai stocks gain after stimulus briefing as Asian markets rally
- South Korea military says 'fully ready' as drone flights anger North
- Pakistan 'vigilantes' behind rise in online blasphemy cases
- Nearly 90, but opera legend Kabaivanska is still calling tune
- Smith experiment as Test opener over, Green out of India series
- With inflation down, ECB eyes faster tempo of rate cuts
- Is life possible on a Jupiter moon? NASA goes to investigate
Workers at GM ratify contract in win for US auto union
Workers at General Motors have voted to ratify a new labor contract with sweeping pay increases, according to figures published Thursday, a landmark step after a major auto industry strike this year.
About 55 percent of GM's hourly workforce endorsed the contract, according to figures published by the United Auto Workers, which had launched an unprecedented simultaneous stoppage of Detroit's "Big Three" in September.
The roughly six-week stoppage drew the attention of President Biden, who strongly endorsed worker demands and made history as the first US president to stand on a picket line.
UAW negotiators reached tentative agreements in late October with Ford, Stellantis and GM, setting the stage for worker votes on the pacts. Employees went back on the job after the tentative agreements were announced.
A parallel contract agreement also appeared headed for victory at Ford and Stellantis, where the "yes" vote led by a wider margin than at GM with some votes still outstanding. A final tally may not be released at Ford and Stellantis until early next week.
Under recently elected UAW President Shawn Fain, the union ordered a partial walkout at the three automakers on September 15, insisting that the companies significantly boost pay and benefits to make up for union concessions following the 2008 industry downturn.
Arguing that "record profits mean record contracts," Fain expanded the strikes multiple times, as the two sides drew closer to a deal.
Key elements of the deal included a 25 percent wage increase for hourly employees; guaranteed cost-of-living adjustments; an elimination of different pay levels or "tiers" that disadvantage junior employees; and a right to strike over plant closures.
While the agreements won widespread praise among labor pundits and academics, the vote of rank-and-file workers was closer than some expected.
In recent days, US media had focused on the possibility that the GM deal could be voted down after a majority of votes at some big company facilities went against the contract.
Kate Bronfenbrenner, director of labor education research at Cornell's School of Industrial and Labor Relations, attributed the tightness of the vote to disappointment that the UAW did not win the reinstatement of pensions for junior workers, who will instead receive a 401-K as a retirement plan.
While Fain and other leaders won several significant victories, the pension matter had been a "key" issue, she said.
Bronfenbrenner said there are always some workers disappointed with the final deal after a lengthy strike.
Rank-and-file workers aren't "in the room" where negotiations take place and can't know when union leadership concludes they won't get a better offer, she said.
H.E.Young--AMWN