Ruesselsheim - Employees of ailing German carmaker Opel agreed to a restructuring deal with its proposed future owner, Canadian car parts manufacturer Magna, on Tuesday. The workforce at General Motors' European subsidiary was willing to forfeit 265 million euros (390 million dollars) in salary annually, the works council announced in Ruesselsheim.
In exchange, the employees are to be given 10 per cent share options in "New Opel", the carmaker's working name after its split from GM.
The agreement is a prerequisite for Opel to be sold to Magna, and is also only valid if Magna does indeed take over the car manufacturer, employee representatives said.
GM's board is due later in the day to make its final decision whether to sell Opel to Magna.
Opel's European operations include factories in Belgium, Spain and in Britain, where the cars are sold under the Vauxhall brand.
About half of Opel's 50,000-strong workforce is in Germany.
