U.A.W. Chief and Senator Gain From Face-Off

By MICHELINE MAYNARD and CARL HULSE
NYT

DETROIT — For more than 70 years, the United Automobile Workers union has known who its adversaries were: company executives, foreign automakers and right-to-work advocates who fought its organizing drives.

Now it has another: Senator Robert Phillips Corker Jr.

On Thursday night, Senator Corker, a freshman Republican from Tennessee, pushed the U.A.W.’s president, Ron Gettelfinger, to agree in principle to tough contract concessions before the Senate Republicans would agree to provide a lifeline to General Motors and Chrysler.

But Mr. Gettelfinger, after giving ground in recent years on health care, job security and pay issues, would not agree to let the concessions take effect next year. The impasse effectively killed the chances for a $14 billion bailout package from Congress.

While the deal was lost, both Mr. Gettelfinger and Senator Corker can claim a victory of sorts, perhaps setting the stage for future showdowns.

(More here.)