Ford, UAW reach tenative deal on contract

DETROIT -- The United Auto Workers union says it has reached a tentative deal with Ford Motor Co. on contract concessions.

Details of the agreement will be presented to plant-level union leaders from across the country at a meeting today in Detroit. Those leaders will vote on whether to recommend the deal to Ford's 41,000 UAW members.

The deal would make modifications to a four-year pact reached in November 2007. The pact was modified in February and Ford was seeking concessions similar to those the UAW granted to General Motors and Chrysler.

Ford is the only Detroit-area automaker to avoid bankruptcy protection, so the deal may be a tough sell to the membership.