Just a week before the current contract was set to expire, General Electric and its two largest unions tentatively agreed to terms Sunday on a new four-year contract affecting over 20,000 workers across the country. Although no specifics were given in the statement released by union and company officials, improvements in health care issues, holidays, and conditions for shorter-term employees were claimed by the union. Manufacturers nation-wide have been keeping a close eye on the negotiations, which have been viewed as a signal in the trend in how large-scale companies deal with health-care costs and pensions while still remaining competitive.
See "General Electric, labor unions reach tentative contract deals", Boston Herald, June 17, 2007