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HOUSTON, May 30 (Reuters) - Managers at BP Plc andHusky Energy's joint-venture Toledo, Ohio, refinerysaid they reached agreement on a tentative contract on Saturdaywith union workers, a step toward ending a strike that haslasted nearly four months.
A spokeswoman for the United Steelworkers union (USW), whichrepresents the striking workers, did not have information aboutthe agreement on Saturday afternoon.
USW Local 1-346 had offered on Wednesday night to end thestrike and continue bargaining with the company while the morethan 300 workers returned to their jobs.
Temporary replacement workers have kept the 135,000 barrelper day (bpd) Toledo refinery in operation since the strikebegan on Feb. 8.
"The USW will begin their ratification process and we expecta vote sometime this week," said Jeff Steigauf, the Toledorefinery's human resources manager in a statement.
"Concurrently, representatives of the company and union willbe negotiating the terms of the return to work agreement toensure the safe and orderly transition of the hourly workforceback into the refinery," Steigauf said.
Returning the union workers to their jobs has taken up tothree weeks at 13 other chemical plants and refineries wherestrikes have taken place since early February.
No terms of the tentative pact were disclosed by therefinery on Saturday, but the agreement should be for four yearsand include a pay raise of 2.5 percent in the first year, 3percent in the second and third year and 3.5 percent in thefourth year.
The pay raises were part of a national agreement reached inMarch between the USW and U.S. refinery owners to end a thelargest strike by refinery and chemical plant workers in 35years. Toledo refinery workers continued their walkout as unionand company negotiators wrangled over local issues.
The Toledo refinery was one of 12 U.S. refineries,accounting for one-fifth of national refining capacity, whereworkers were called to strike by the USW's internationalleadership. Workers also went on strike at three chemicalplants.
Workers at one other refinery, Marathon Petroleum Corp's Galveston Bay Refinery in Texas City, Texas, remain onstrike over local issues. (Reporting by Erwin Seba; Editing by David Gregorio)
