Union workers ratify Goodyear contract

Members of the united steelworkers union have overwhelmingly ratified A new four-year contract with Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company. Steelworkers at plants in Gadsden; Buffalo, N.Y.; Topeka, Kan.; Fayetteville, N.C.; Danville, Va.; and Akron, Ohio, passed the contract by a 3-1 margin, according to the union, which represents about 8,500 Goodyear workers. The new contract will, among other things, maintain a minimum staffing level of 1,140 hourly workers at the Gadsden goodyear plant and provide a 50 cent per hour raise each year for about 25 percent of the workers. Employees will also receive a thousand dollar signing bonus when the contrite is ratified.Gadsden Local 12 President David Hayes said 85 percent of the membership in Gadsden voted in favor of the contract.