Harley-Davidson unions approve new labor deals

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.bizjournals.com/milwaukee/stories/2008/03/31/daily53.html

Friday, April 4, 2008 - 2:50 PM CDT

All three unions representing Harley-Davidson Inc. employees in Wisconsin voted Friday to ratify new collective bargaining agreements with the Milwaukee motorcycle manufacturer.

The new four-year agreements, which cover approximately 2,210 employees, are retroactive to April 1 when previous seven-year deals expired.

Harley-Davidson (NYSE: HOG) has individual labor agreements with United Steelworkers Local 2-209 and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Lodge 78, which represent about 1,700 and 150 employees, respectively, in the Milwaukee area.

The company also has a labor agreement with the Steelworkers Local 460 in Tomahawk, which represents about 360 employees.

"Harley-Davidson has a long history of working with our union partners to manage the business," said Harold Scott, Harley-Davidson's vice president of human resources. "The new contracts balance Harley-Davidson's need to responsibly manage our business for the long term in a competitive global market with our desire to continue to provide a strong wage and benefits package for employees."

The new labor deals provide unspecified wage increases and establish a health care reimbursement program for bargaining unit employees, under which they can use program dollars to help pay for out-of-pocket health care costs. Other unspecified health care plan provisions are designed to control the rising costs of health care coverage, according to company management.

Harley-Davidson management and labor unions representing the Milwaukee motorcycle manufacturers' workers in Wisconsin announced April 1 that they had reached a tentative agreement on a new four-year contract.

[Dr.Phool]

1. I'd take a celebratory ride on my Hawg right now.

If it wasn't raining so fucking hard.