UPDATE 2-Ford signs pay deal in Russia, averts strike http://today.reuters.com/news/articlebusiness.aspx?type=basicIndustries&storyid=nL01023534&from=business
Thu Mar 1, 2007
(Adds Ford statement)
By Denis Pinchuk
ST PETERSBURG, Russia, March 1 (Reuters) - U.S. car maker Ford Motor Co.(F.N: Quote, Profile, Research) has signed a deal on pay and conditions at its plant in Russia, averting a repetition of a one-day strike last month, the company and union officials said on Thursday.
"Talks are completed, the conflict is over, there will be no strike," union leader Alexei Etmanov told Reuters.
Workers at the plant near St Petersburg, one of the biggest in Russia owned by a foreign auto maker, last month halted production when demands over pay and conditions were not met.
Ford said in a statement the agreement on a 14 to 20 percent rise in pay and other financial and social improvements came into force on Thursday and would be valid for a year.
"The signing of the labour agreement is a satisfactory result for both sides. As wages rise and social package widens, Ford remains one of the most competitive employers in the region," General Director Theo Streit said in the statement.
The deal also includes job guarantees related to health issues, a source familiar with the agreement told Reuters.
A source at Ford said the agreed deal had lifted the threat of a new strike at the plant, which turns out 300 Ford Focus models a day. Demand for foreign cars is booming in Russia and Ford is among the most successful of the foreign marques, with total sales of 116,000 locally produced and imported vehicles in Russia last year.
Assembly line workers typically earn 13,000 to 19,000 roubles ($490 to $720) per month, which is above the national average wage in Russia. Annual price inflation was 9 percent in Russia last year.
The plant produced 60,000 cars last year -- mainly the Focus model -- and plans to increase output this year to 75,000 cars.
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