Deere: UAW members ratify 6-year contract

[October 05, 2009]  MOLINE (AP) -- Deere & Co. says it has been notified by the United Auto Workers that union members have ratified a six-year contract.

The agreement, which covers about 9,500 workers and 17,000 retirees, takes effect Monday and expires Oct. 1, 2015.

Neither party provided details about the contract's terms.

Deere and the union began negotiations in late August. The previous contract went into effect Oct. 1, 2003 and expired at midnight last Wednesday.

The world's largest maker of farm equipment has been battered by the slumping global economy that depressed sales of its tractors, bulldozers and other products.

The UAW-Deere agreement represents workers at sites in Illinois, Iowa, Kansas and parts depots in Atlanta and Denver.

[Associated Press]

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.