Deere, UAW reach tentative pact; strike continues for now

Farm equipment manufacturer Deere & Co. reached a tentative labor agreement Saturday with the United Auto Workers union.

But a UAW strike that began Oct. 14 will continue — and details of the proposed contract will not be released — while workers study the terms of the agreement in advance of a vote.

The pact would cover more than 10,000 production and maintenance workers at 12 Deere sites in Iowa, Illinois and Kansas.

The strike began after UAW workers overwhelmingly rejected an initial proposed contract that would have delivered immediate 5% raises for some workers and 6% for others depending on their positions at Deere factories.