So far just a huge, voluntary reduction in workforce. 740 current employees at the plant just accepted buyouts. That reduction probably eliminates the prospect of layoffs for the immediate future.
I'd like to think so as well, but weren't they expecting a larger number? Am I wrong to still be worried?
I believe, save just a few Goodyear factories,NOT including the plant where I work Danville, Virginia ,that Goodyear will organize and keep just it's most profitable and non-union plants and shutdown the rest. Similar employee shuffling and non replacement is taking place in Danville as those that occurred in Alabama. In my opinion, and of course I hope I am wrong, "The writing is on the wall."
as a employee of gadsden .i can say that goodyear is using words alreaddy to muniplate the contract.when you try to talk to the union they talk down to you granted i didnt go to alabama .but i did graduate a ivey league school ,and start and own my own international buisness.so what would i know .but the local dont question anyone .like they got blinders on .i asked president once any more layoff comming .i dont know nothan. humm former vp of local 12 in gadsden resinged. transferd to somewere else.humm .they were able to help him.but they dont puss back on anything . if company writes up person union says ok.they are all cowards. scare to fight .so here we go time to let it go.
Anyone that does not think the plant in Gadsden is not going to be closed is simply not informed. Recent comments from the CEO during an earnings call indicated that a massive restructure in the company is underway and an effort to reduce “low value/high cost” capacity will be also be completed. “Low value/high cost” is an accurate description of the Gadsden plant.
There are also reasons to suggest that other Goodyear plants in North CArolina and Oklahoma will NOT be closed. North Carolina’s plant recently received a $260 million infusion and Oklahoma’s plant vastly outproduces the Gadsden plant and is NON-UNION.
All of this information points to an idle Gadsden plant or outright closure—either way, all jobs will be lost. Only contractual obligations stand in the way right now and those will be over in 2022.
IF the workers at the Gadsden plant really wanted to convince Goodyear to keep the plant open, they could offer to drastically cut expenses by petitioning the NLRB to decertify the steelworkers union there and become a 100% nonunion plant. The union hall could be shut down and made into a Community Center for East Gadsden. The reason Gadsden is slated for shutdown and others, like plant in Lawton Oklahoma is being kept open, is primarily because the Lawton plant and others are much more efficient and in Lawton’s case NON-UNION.
Remember, a job with no union is better than no job and no union. Just ask the guys and girls that worked at the steel plant in Gadsden and the old Paper mill plant in Tuscaloosa.
On January 16th Goodyear announced that more layoffs are coming, approximately 120 hourly and 25 to 30 salaried employees will be affected. They're still not saying anything more about long term plans, but it's pretty obvious where this is heading. The thinking now is that they will leave the bare minimum staff needed to fill their contract with Ford for OEM tires (which ends in March), and then close the plant.
And I bet the suits from India and Europe are still strutting around in Akron, travelling on corporate tickets, living off company expenses, collecting air-miles for family vacations and telling everyone in their patronizing Bangalore accent how everything is not only fine but will get better because they understand American business model better than the Americans themselves: How stupid we Americans are! Don't we even understand that the company is cutting jobs, ruing our lives and family welfare all for our own good?!!
i would like to add. the union is not helping at all there local members. they only protect themselfs. also i work there so i know .people getting scared .and union president mickey williams, is stabbing us in the back or as we say blindly turning his back on us ,also he resently bought a new house humm just saying.america needs people who can lead but not people like them .united steel workers union. they wont take a call from us reg people. why?????????
A large number of salaried employees have been laid off this week, nobody knows if there are more layoffs coming or if they are done.
It's pretty well understood that Goodyear intends to close the Gadsden plant, the only question is when. Conventional wisdom is that it will be when the current union contract expires in 2022, but so far they have been silent as to their intentions. There are a few loopholes in the contract which Goodyear could potentially exploit to close the plant sooner. In any case, looking at some of the positions which were eliminated it's pretty clear they have no intention of keeping the plant running.