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GM’s German Labor Talks Could Stretch into 2013

Germany's IG Metall union says it will continue to negotiate with General Motors Co.'s Opel unit about the company's restructuring plans, even though an Oct. 26 deadline for an agreement has passed.
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Germany's IG Metall union says it will continue to negotiate with General Motors Co.'s Opel unit about the company's restructuring plans, even though an Oct. 26 deadline for an agreement has passed.

The union tells Reuters that finalizing a deal could take as long as three more months.

The talks involve Opel's demands for labor cost concessions and its plan to close its assembly plant in Bochum, Germany, after 2016. GM said late last year it expected Opel to finalize the turnaround plant by March. But labor negotiations and discussions with European governments have dragged on without resolution.

IG Metall agreed in June to let Opel defer until Oct. 31 payment of a 4.3% wage national wage increase. Next month Opel will pay workers a lump sum to make up the difference through October, the union tells Reuters. Then Opel can defer the raise indefinitely.

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