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United Auto Workers Union Local No. 95 President Tim Silha said a tentative agreement was reached in a meeting Thursday night at the Union Hall in Janesville and was ratified by union members.

“Not unanimously or anything, but it was at a comfortable margin,� Silha said. “It was hard-fought negotiations, but we believe we brought membership a fair and equitable agreement between the two parties.�

“My members were smart enough to read the newspaper. They know what their upper echelon were getting paid and pushed for fair reward for their work,� he continued. “We believe we set the bar high enough for those ships also (for other Mercyhealth units).�

Silha declined to offer more specific details on the contact.

One Mercyhealth employee who asked remain anonymous told ÃÛèÖÊÓƵ “we should and could have done better.â€�

ÃÛèÖÊÓƵ reported June 6 that Mercyhealth employees were set to walk off the job if terms of a new labor contract weren’t reached.

Silha told ÃÛèÖÊÓƵ that 140 employees the union represents at Mercyhealth East, an outpatient clinic on East Milwaukee Street, have worked without a contract for more than a week after the groupÃÛèÖÊÓƵ previous three-year contract expired.

The union gave a 10-day notice of intent to walk out if the contract negotiations weren’t settled. Silha previously said he would not detail what the union and Mercyhealth were working through but did say the impasse was partly over pay and benefits.