Dana, UAW Agree on New Contract

It's a big year for both the American automotive industry giants and the UAW, as the two sides will clash this summer in Detroit. This week, the first good signs appeared on the industry's sky, after the UAW representatives and supplier Dana agreed on their new contract.

According to Freep, 2,500 Dana employees, at the same time UAW members, gave their thumbs up to the new contract, which includes provisions about wage increases and a new profit sharing plan. 75 percent of the voting workers agreed to share the profit in a scheme similar to that used for the salaried employees.

“Our goal was simple. We wanted a profit sharing plant that was transparent and that pays out,” UAW vice president Cindy Estrada was quoted as saying by Freep. “It’s a plan that is very similar to the plan for their senior management.”

As for the rest of the industry, no one can tell at this point what the outcome of the summer meeting will be. Since 2005, UAW workers of the Detroit Three feel they have made enough sacrifices for the greater good, with the organization's new president, Bob King, estimating that each member gave $7,000 to $30,000 in concessions since that year.

The UAW will agree on a general strategy for the meeting this week, as its top members will converge for the Cobo Center in Detroit starting March 22, for the UAW convention. Aside for the contracts with the American auto makers, one of the main topics of the meeting will be the unionization of Asian or German factories.