Contract swap with Ford wins heavily in local vote

The first vote is in on a historic contract proposal between Ford and the United Automobile Workers' Union. A Northville, Mich., UAW local whose members have been laid off since November voted 126 to 5 to surrender benefits for job security.

Voting by 170,000 Ford workers nationwide will continue through the week. The agreement, which swaps union wage and benefit concessions for a two-year moratorium on plant closings, is expected to passed by a wide margin.