'Everything on table' in talks with GM: Unifor head

2,500 Oshawa, Ont., jobs on the line

TORONTO (Reuters) — All issues are on the table in negotiations with General Motors Co, the head of its main Canadian autoworkers union said on Monday, as the union pushes to secure new investment as part of a labour contract ahead of a midnight strike deadline.

Unifor and General Motors Co, which resumed talks early on Monday, have been divided over union demands that GM commit to building new vehicle models at its Oshawa, Ont., plant.

A strike would involve nearly 4,000 workers at two GM plants in the Ontario cities of Oshawa and St Catharines. A third GM plant in the Canadian province is excluded from talks because its 2,700 workers have a separate contract.

The union said that over the past few days it has also been fighting to hold on to more secure defined benefit pensions plans and seeking higher wages.

Unifor National President Jerry Dias said in a morning interview the two sides had worked through the night and he was feeling encouraged by the way talks are going.

"We're kicking around all kinds of concepts. I'm not even going to get into any detail because it's incredibly sensitive at this moment," he said. "Everything is on the table right now. We're talking about everything."

Dias reiterated his position that the union will not extend its strike deadline.

The union said separately on Twitter that there is some progress at 12 hours before the deadline.

Without a deal, GM members would have a legal right to strike at midnight on Tuesday.

GM Canada is focused on working with Unifor to reach a "mutually beneficial and competitive new agreement," spokeswoman Jennifer Wright said in an email.

A four-year contract covering the workers of GM, Fiat Chrysler and Ford in Ontario expires on Monday. The union chose GM as its strike target for contract talks, with GM's deal setting the pattern for the other manufacturers that are expected to sign similar deals.

Contract talks could save 2,500 jobs at GM's Oshawa car assembly, or take the plant one step closer to closure. The automaker was already on the verge of shutting one of two assembly lines at its Oshawa plant, with several vehicles either produced in another country or expected to move in 2017.

Flavio Volpe, president of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers' Association, said a strike would be difficult for his Canadian members, but worth it if it means securing the future of GM's Oshawa plant.

"A long-term stoppage would be painful, but less painful than a permanent closure," he said, noting the two plants covered by the talks buy C$600 million to C$700 million from local suppliers.

There are no obvious products that would go into the Oshawa plant. The automaker has said it would only make future product decisions after a labour deal.

Canada has been struggling to get new investments from automakers in its once-thriving vehicle assembly industry, losing out to the southern United States and lower-cost Mexico.

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