UAW Ratifies GM Pact

General Motors and the United Auto Workers union have come to a new four-year labor agreement, the first since the company filed for bankruptcy in 2009. The deal gives each worker at least $11,500 in bonuses over four years and promises wage increases for entry-level workers by 2013. It is expected to preserve or add 6,400 U.S. jobs. The UAW is using the GM agreement as a basis for its negotiations with Ford and Chrysler, which are still ongoing. GM and Chrysler workers gave up their right to strike over wage and benefit issues as part of the 2009 bankruptcy agreement.