GEDDES -- A somber atmosphere at the State Fairgrounds Sunday where hundreds of New Process Gear workers heard the details of their latest contract offer from the company.
Rank and file employees with the United Auto Workers Union say the new deal offers buyouts to many employees depending on how many years of service to the company. Other workers told Action News they're being forced to take pay cuts on top of cuts they already accepted last year.
If the contract is ratified, the new deal would run for the next four years, but top union officials were unavailable to comment on the package at Sunday's meeting.
Action News though talked with NPG worker Hugh Bunker. He's been an employee at NPG for 10 years. He said, " it looks like the company is going to leave anyhow. They want us to finance our own severance package. They want to take reductions in wages, so they can leave down the road."
NPG worker Vicki Thomas says she's done giving back to the company. Thomas, a ten year employee of NPG said, " they want us to cut our pay another 30 percent from what we're making now. I can't live on that. I will work two jobs somewhere else before I give them the satisfaction of cutting my pay over 50 percent of what I was making a year ago."
Voting on the new contract is expected to get underway Monday afternoon.
