WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman John Conyers, Jr. voiced his disappointment with Delphi CEO, Steve Miller’s request to a bankruptcy judge to void the company’s labor contracts.

“On Thursday March 30, I, along with 13 colleagues, sent a letter to Mr. Miller to urge him to reach a fair settlement with his employees and their representatives, rather than use the bankruptcy process in order to avoid collective bargaining,” Conyers said.  “If the judge fulfills Miller’s request, and agrees to void the contracts, it would be devastating for Delphi employees and a major setback for a significant number of workers in Michigan.”

Below is a copy of the aforementioned letter:

Mr. Steve Miller, CEO
Delphi Corporation
 
Dear Mr. Miller:
 
We are writing to express our concern arising from news reports that Delphi Corporation may seek to cancel its labor contracts and ask the bankruptcy court for permission to impose dramatic job, wage, and benefit cuts on the Delphi workforce.
 
Congress has a keen interest in this matter, beyond our immediate concern for Delphi workers and their families.  The impact of job losses or drastic wage and benefit cuts at Delphi would be felt by everyone from a direct downstream supplier to the local coffee shop that relies on the disposable income of these Delphi workers.  Such cuts would have obvious and very negative ripple effects in local and regional economies.  Your actions will have direct consequences not only for the workers and their families who have given so much to Delphi, but the communities that have long-supported your company.
 
Members of Congress are watching events at your company very closely. We strongly urge you to bargain in good faith and come to a fair agreement with your employees and their representatives, rather than use the bankruptcy process to evade collective bargaining.  Good faith bargaining includes a fundamental obligation to provide your employees' representatives with the information necessary to allow them to fully evaluate any and all proposals, as well as a serious and exhaustive effort to reach, not avoid, a final agreement.  Such bargaining, as Congress has long-recognized, is not simply obligatory under the law but critical to achieving a fair and workable solution to the difficulties facing Delphi and its workforce.
 
Sincerely,

###3-30-2006###