According to a spokesperson for the Canadian Auto Workers, a marathon round of night-time negotiations resulted in a new contract agreement between the CAW and General Motors and the union has also achieved an "in principle" agreement with Chrysler LLC.

Shannon Devine of the CAW, speaking to Reuters, announced the tentative GM agreement and said reporters would receive a more thorough briefing later in the day on Thursday, May 15. General Motors spokeswoman Patty Faith confirmed that a deal had been reached.

Of the situation with Chrysler LLC, CAW President Buzz Hargrove said, "We have an agreement in principle on all the outstanding issues. Our people are working on the language." Earlier Hargrove had indicated that the deals with both automakers would follow the pattern of the union's already ratified three-year agreement with Ford.

The negotiations had a direct bearing on the contracts of approximately 23,000 Canadian union members employed by both GM and Chrysler. The agreement will contain provisions for a buyout and early retirement for some 1,200 of those workers at a transmission plant in Windsor, Ontario that GM will close in 2010.

The current contracts between the CAW and the automakers expire on September 16. The agreement with Ford was ratified on May 4 and there has been a push within the union to achieve quick negotiations with GM and Chrysler.