Negotiators with the United Auto Workers union and Chrysler LLC have made progress on efforts to reach a new four-year contract agreement, but the union has notified the company that a strike is possible, a person briefed on the talks said Sunday.
The union gave Chrysler a 72-hour notice of a potential strike, the person said, but it was unclear Sunday exactly whether the notice would end on Tuesday or Wednesday.
Bargainers working in committees made progress during the weekend but still have much work to do on difficult issues, said the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the talks are private. AP.org
The deadline appeared to be an effort to keep the talks from dragging on for days as they did at General Motors last month, where the contract covering 73,000 workers expired on Sept. 14. After talking for nine days, the union walked out for two days before reaching a deal on Sept. 26.
Once the deadline at Chrysler is past, the union could strike the company, or it could extend its contract hour to hour, as it initially did at G. M., said one person with knowledge of the talks. These people spoke on anonymity because the discussions are private.
A short strike may not hurt Chrysler much because it has five U. S. plants scheduled to be shut down for a week or two starting Monday because of lower market demand for their products.
Negotiators bargained Saturday and returned to the table Sunday, Chrysler spokeswoman Michele Tinson said, adding that the two sides were making progress.
“We remain optimistic, ” she said Sunday afternoon. TOM KRISHER, AP.org
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