DETROIT (AP) — General Motors shut down another plant on Thursday because of a strike at an important parts supplier, American Axle and Manufacturing Holdings, even as labor talks were scheduled to resume between American Axle and the United Automobile Workers.þþG.M. temporarily closed its assembly plant at Wentzville, Mo., west of St. Louis, after it ran out of parts from American Axle. The plant employs nearly 2,000 people and makes the GMC Savanna and Chevrolet Express vans.þþAbout 3,600 U.A.W. workers at five American Axle plants in Michigan and New York walked off the job on Feb. 26 after contract talks broke down over wages and other issues. The resulting parts shortage has forced G.M. and some parts suppliers to shut down plants in the United States and Canada, affecting thousands of their workers.þþThe American Axle talks resumed at noon Thursday, a company spokeswoman, Renee Rogers, said. The U.A.W. did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment. þþG.M., which spun off American Axle in 1994, provides nearly 80 percent of the company’s business.þþThe strike has forced the automaker to shut down six plants temporarily. An Indiana plant that makes Hummers under contract to G.M. was also closed. On Monday, G.M. has said, it expects to close a metal-casting plant in Saginaw, Mich.; an engine plant in Romulus, Mich.; and an engine plant in Moraine, Ohio.þþThe union says that American Axle is demanding wage reductions up to $14 an hour as well as elimination of future retiree and pension benefits.þþAmerican Axle says it wants to cut total labor costs to $20 to $30 an hour, which would be similar to terms reached between the U.A.W. and the in-house axle-making operations at Ford and Chrysler and at suppliers like the Dana Corporation and Delphi. þþG.M. Reverses Chief’s Pay CutþþDETROIT (AP) — General Motors said Thursday that its chief executive, Rick Wagoner, would receive a salary of $2.2 million in 2008, restoring his base pay to the level before he accepted a pay cut in 2006 as part of a turnaround plan. þþG.M. said its board, which met Monday, also voted to give the new president and chief operating officer, Fritz Henderson, a salary of $1.8 million.þþ
Source: NY Times
