Harley board confirms Wis. plants to stay open

By DINESH RAMDE, Associated Press Writer

MILWAUKEE (AP) - Harley-Davidson Inc. has agreed to keep its two Wisconsin production facilities open.

The announcement Tuesday came after Harley's three Wisconsin unions agreed Monday to a new contract laden with concessions.

The motorcycle company had warned it would move its production to another state if the unions rejected the deal. That would have eliminated about 1,350 jobs.

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After reviewing the voting results, the board of directors agreed to call off the search for replacement sites.

The contract freezes employees' pay, slashes hundreds of production jobs and assigns large volumes of work to part-time workers. But it also saves hundreds of jobs.

Many workers said they didn't like the deal, but voted for it only to help keep jobs in the state.

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Online: Harley-Davidson

(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)