BUENA VISTA TOWNSHIP, MI -- Less than 24 hours after Nexteer Automotive workers represented by UAW Local 699 walked off their jobs, company and union officials have reached a second tentative agreement.

The following message was posted on the UAW Local 699 Facebook page just after 8 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 8:

"Special Announcement

The union and the company have reached a tentative agreement. This means everyone is to report to their regular schedule starting 3rd shift tonight and regular schedule will follow on day shift and so forth. More information to follow as information becomes available."

Soon after, this message to members was posted on the page:

"Clarification, 3rd shift is to report tonight if you are available. Everyone is to start back with 1st shift Wednesday, December 9, 2015."

Mark Decker, vice president and chief human resources officer for Nexteer, issued this statement Tuesday night:

"Following an interruption in production on December 8, 2015, employees have resumed regular schedules as Nexteer and the UAW have reached a new tentative agreement. The UAW will submit the new tentative agreement to a vote by our employees."

Nexteer is a global automotive steering company that employs 12,000, including 5,000 in Michigan. More than 4,800 work for Nexteer in Saginaw County, according to Saginaw Future officials.

Formerly Delphi Saginaw Steering Systems, Nexteer was sold in 2010 to China-based Pacific Century Motors.

UAW Local 699 represents about 3,350 Nexteer Automotive workers in Saginaw County and retirees. Workers were taking turns picketing for six-hour shifts at the Holland location and at another plant on M-81.

The union and the company reached their first tentative agreement last week, but members on Sunday, Dec. 6, rejected the proposed contract by a landslide. The outcome was 399 "no" votes to eight "yes" votes for trade workers, and 2,704 "no" votes to 72 "yes" votes for production workers.

Nexteer officials said the rejected contract rewarded employees and protected the company, but workers disagreed.

UAW Local 699 President Rick Burzynski said members rejected the initial tentative agreement primarily because of concerns related to wages and benefits.

A strike went into effect at midnight Tuesday.

Before the strike began, the union made a second proposal, and it was rejected by the international union, Burzynski said.

"The international looked at it, and they feel that our members, from what they heard, (they) decided that our members would not accept it," he explained.

The union then made a third proposal, which was submitted to Nexteer on Monday, along with a warning to members that the current contract would terminate at midnight Tuesday, Burzynski said.

Now that a second tentative agreement has been reached, union members once again will have an opportunity to vote either for or against it.

Get more Nexteer news here.

Heather Jordan is a reporter for MLive/The Saginaw News/The Bay City Times. She can be reached at 989-450-2652 or hjordan@mlive.com. For more news, follow her on Twitter.