Ford suffers UAW setback, Canadian workers OK cuts

U.S. factory workers at Ford Motor Co overwhelmingly rejected proposed concessions it has said it needs to stay competitive, while union workers in Canada on Sunday accepted cuts aimed at retaining jobs.

The Canadian Auto Workers union voted 83 percent in favor of an agreement that freezes wages for some 7,000 workers into September 2012 in exchange for protecting most factory jobs in Canada.

The CAW had announced the tentative pact with Ford on Friday and set a whirlwind weekend vote.

"Ford continues to make progress on its transformation plan and our efforts to be competitive when it comes to labor costs are key to continuing to build a healthy, sustainable business in Canada for all our employees," Ford said in a statement.

The win for Ford in Canada, which accounts for a little over 10 percent of its North American output, comes as its main union, the United Auto Workers, prepares to announce a stunning defeat for a similar proposal in the automaker's home market.

A UAW vote in the United States has dragged on for two weeks to steadily building opposition from rank-and-file workers who have objected to giving Ford the same concessions already granted to rivals General Motors Co and Chrysler as part of their government-financed bankruptcies.

An official tally was not yet available on Sunday, but UAW members voted against the concessionary deal at most of Ford's U.S. assembly plants leaving no doubt about the outcome.

The UAW represents about 41,000 U.S. factory workers at Ford and ratification of the proposed changes required the support of a majority of votes cast.

The UAW plans to release the results formally on Monday and President Ron Gettelfinger told reporters on Friday that he had no plans to seek a revote on the deal or more talks with Ford before 2011. The current four-year deal expires in 2011.

The margin of defeat was substantial at some of Ford's biggest assembly plants. Overall, seven of the 10 listed assembly plants voted down the contract, many overwhelmingly.