Delphi asks court to void its agreements with unions

DETROIT -- Auto parts supplier Delphi Corp. unveiled a broad restructuring plan yesterday that would cut 8,500 salaried jobs, shut or sell a third of its plants worldwide, and asks a bankruptcy court judge to void its labor agreements in a move that sent a shudder through the auto industry.

The United Auto Workers warned ''it will be impossible to avoid a long strike" if the judge agrees to void the contracts and Delphi imposes its most recent wage proposal. A strike could put General Motors Corp., Delphi's former parent and largest customer, perilously close to bankruptcy and hurt other automakers and smaller suppliers as well.

GM accounted for just under half of Delphi's $26.9 billion in revenues last year. In a recent note to investors, Merrill Lynch analyst John Murphy estimated a Delphi strike could cost GM up to $130 million per day.