GM plant in Mich. ratifies contract, ends strike

DETROIT, May 16 (Reuters) - Workers at a General Motors Corp (GM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) plant near Lansing, Michigan ratified a new local contract on Friday, ending a month-long strike that shut down production of popular GM crossover vehicles.

Workers at United Auto Workers Local 602 voted to ratify a new local agreement with GM, clearing the way for production to resume Monday, the union said in a posting on its website.

A GM spokesman was not immediately available for comment.

Some 2,300 workers at GM's Lansing Delta Township assembly plant had been on strike since mid-April, shutting down production of crossover vehicles that GM sees as crucial to keep customers from defecting from heavier, less fuel efficient sport utility vehicles.

The GM plant near Lansing builds the Buick Enclave, GMC Acadia and Saturn Outlook models.

GM and union negotiators for the UAW local bargaining unit had reached a tentative agreement on Thursday. The deal was ratified by almost 74 percent of workers, UAW Local 602 said.

GM and the UAW reached a ground-breaking national contract last year intended to allow the automaker to reduce costs by introducing a second-tier wage and shifting health care liabilities to a union-affiliated trust fund.

But the automaker has had some trouble getting local unit bargaining units to approve local agreements covering work rules and other issues.

A UAW local at a plant near Kansas City, Kansas remains on strike. That strike began on May 5 and has shut down GM's production of its popular Chevrolet Malibu sedan.