MORAINE, Ohio (AP) — General Motors said Tuesday it has reached agreement with union representatives on buyouts and early retirement packages to be offered to the 2,346 hourly workers at its mid-sized sport utility vehicle plant in suburban Dayton.
The packages for the members of the International Union of Electronic Workers-Communications Workers of America Local 798 are the same as those offered to the rest of GM's U.S. blue collar work force represented by the United Auto Workers, spokesman Dan Flores said.
Workers at the plant make the Chevy TrailBlazer and other midsize SUVs. The plant employed about 4,100 people there until mid-2006, when GM eliminated the third production shift based on slowing sales for SUVs, which have been hurt by higher gasoline prices.
''The plant is scheduled to build those products into the foreseeable future,'' Flores said. ''Beyond the current products, they are unassigned.''
Workers could take a one-time lump sum, set up an IRA, take a monthly annuity or create their own combination. Specifics of the proposal will be presented to workers in two weeks, and they will have 52 days to decide, Flores said.
Workers who take a buyout or early retirement would leave the company by July 1, he said.
