US: Adding jobs to be critical in Ford-UAW talks

Detroit Free Press - The UAW's goal of winning more U.S. jobs was a key factor in convincing General Motors workers to ratify a new four-year contract and will be equally critical in the union's negotiations with Ford.

UAW President Bob King continued talking with Ford on Wednesday. Union leaders have said they expect to reach an agreement covering the automaker's 40,600 hourly workers by the end of this week.

According to Bloomberg News, Ford and the union have discussed adding as many as 10,000 jobs in the U.S. and may bring production of the Fusion midsize sedan to the U.S. from Mexico.

"There have been speculative reports in the media that a deal is expected to be reached by Thursday. There have also been numbers tossed around with regards to compensation and job security," Tony Vultaggio, a member of the UAW's bargaining committee, said in a message for members late Wednesday. "In both instances, they are just that, speculative.

However, Ford is planning to launch the next-generation Fusion from the same platform as Ford's European Mondeo. Ford builds the Fusion in Hermosillo, Mexico, where it has 3,335 workers.

In January, Ford said it planned to add 6,250 hourly jobs in two years. This year, the company added 1,800 jobs in Louisville, Ky.

Ford will close or sell certain plants if the UAW is unable to win additional product commitments.

Those include Auto Alliance International in Flat Rock, Ohio Assembly in Avon Lake, Ohio, and Twin Cities Assembly in St. Paul, Minn., which ends production of the Ford Ranger in December.

Flat Rock is down to one shift building Ford Mustangs and the Mazda6. It will soon lose Mazda6 production.

Kristin Dziczek, a labor analyst for the Center for Automotive Research, said the Flat Rock plant, which opened in 1987, is probably not in danger.