DETROIT (Reuters) - A federal corruption probe of top union officials stirred growing uncertainty about collective bargaining talks on Saturday, as the current labor contract between the United Auto Workers (UAW) and General Motors Co (GM.N) was set to expire at the stroke of midnight.
This year’s talks between the union and GM, Ford Motor Co (F.N) and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV (FCA) (FCHA.MI) (FCAU.N) always promised to be tough, with thorny issues such as healthcare costs and profit-sharing on the table at a time when sales of new vehicles in the United States are declining.
Normally when the four-year contracts with Detroit’s automakers expire, the question is will contract talks be extended or will union workers go out on strike?
This time things are more complicated.
Over the last two weeks, the longstanding federal investigation into corruption at the union has raised questions about UAW President Gary Jones, who a source said was an unnamed official mentioned in a searing federal complaint this week detailing alleged embezzlement by union leaders.
On Friday, the union’s executive board met, but no changes were made to leadership, a union spokesman said.
The union had targeted GM as the first automaker with which it wanted to conclude contract talks.
The spreading probe raises fresh questions about the union’s options and its leaders’ standing with rank-and-file members. Last month, more than 96% of GM’s hourly workers voted to authorize a strike if necessary, meaning if no deal is reached Jones could call
