DaimlerChrysler Resumes Negotiations

Union representatives and members of DaimlerChrysler's workers' council and board of directors have resumed negotiations about the company's cost-saving proposals. As of late Wednesday, no agreement had been reached, and talks continued into the night before being broken off. On Thursday morning, representatives met in small circles to continue negotiating. "It makes more sense to try and untie the knots in smaller groups," said union spokesman Uwe Meinhard. The head of the workers' council said that talks with management had reached a "very difficult phase." DaimlerChrysler has faced a week of protests and work stoppages in response to its demand that workers accommodate a €500 million ($620 million) reduction in labor costs annually, or see 6,000 jobs moved from its factory in Sindelfingen, near Stuttgart, to Bremen and South Africa. Should the talks fail to reach agreement on Thursday, employee representatives have said there will be nationwide protests.