UAW authorizes Navistar strike

United Auto Workers members at truck and engine maker Navistar International Corp. voted by a 97 percent margin to authorize a strike if a settlement can't be reached in ongoing contract talks, a union spokesman said Thursday.

Talks kicked off July 24. The vote, which took place Tuesday at 12 UAW locals, is a routine part of the negotiating process. The current three-year contract covers about 6,500 workers at plants in Melrose Park; Springfield, Ohio, and Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, Ind. It expires Oct. 1. Warrenville- based Navistar employs about 730 workers in Melrose Park. The company last month reached a contract agreement with workers in Canada ending a six-week strike.

1003