A hearing before an arbitrator is scheduled between Ford and the United Auto Workers. The UAW is alleging that salaried employees did not sacrifice as much as hourly employees. The hearing will take place on September 15th, the day after the contract for 41,000 hourly Ford employees expires. 35,000 workers signed the grievance last year after white-collar employees were given benefits that they had given up. Salaried workers also gave up pay and bonuses and say that they should also be compensated. Both sides say that they want to resolve this issue before they move ahead with bargaining a new contract.
See "Ford Said to Face Hearing on UAW Complaint Tied to Negotiations", Keith Naughton, Bloomberg News, August 23, 2011