New York (CNN Business)Negotiators for the United Auto Workers union and General Motors were due back at the negotiating table Monday after talks throughout the weekend failed to reach a deal to end one of the longest auto strike in decades.þþTalks went into the evening once again on Sunday, according to a person familiar with the negotiations, as the two sides seek an agreement on major issues of pay, profit sharing, job security and GM's use of temporary workers.þThe strike has been the largest against any business in the United States since 2007, when GM (GM) automakers walked off the job for three days. With the strike beginning its third week on Monday, this is the longest work stoppage at GM since 1998, when a 67-day strike at two plants in Flint, Michigan, eventually halted production at 30 other GM factories across the United States.þOnce a tentative deal is reached, union negotiators will need the approval of the rank-and-file members at GM before it can go into effect. Rejection of a tentative deal is not unheard of, with workers at Fiat Chrysler (FCAU) rejecting a deal reached four year ago before approving a second version.þþIt is not clear if the union will have the workers return to work during the ratification process or wait for it to be ratified.þThe strike started at 12:01 a.m. on Monday, September 16, halting work at 31 GM factories and 21 other facilities spread across nine states, mostly in the center of the country. It also led to layoffs at some of the 10,000 American suppliers that provide auto parts and other goods and services to GM. That may have furloughed as many as 200,000 additional workers at those companies, according to estimates.þSigns of progress in the talks emerged late last week, according to people familiar with the matter.þThe union's chief negotiator told members late Wednesday that all the talks had moved to the main table of negotiations, away from the committees that met to work on specific issues, such as contract details applying to one plant or another. And on Thursday GM agreed to restore health care coverage for the strikers at company expense, which was seen as a further sign of progress.
Source: CNN.com
