Members of United Steelworkers Local 12 have approved an agreement to close Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.'s Gadsden plant.
Melissa Monaco, the company’s vice president of Americas communication, in the email from a company official to The Times, said: “Goodyear can confirm that our tentative agreement with the United Steelworkers to close our Gadsden, Alabama tyre plant has been approved by the membership of the local union. This move will position Goodyear to more cost-effectively produce the premium tyres consumers demand and improve the competitiveness of our manufacturing footprint.”
The massive plant once employed more than 4,000 people and was the first major tyre plant built in the South when it opened in 1929. Goodyear had cited "eliminating production of less-profitable consumer tyres" as the reason for closing the factory.
Local 12 estimates its annual impact on the community in economic stimulation, local taxes and charitable contributions at $1.53 billion.
The plant was expanded in 2015, but Goodyear has since concentrated more work at plants in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and San Luis Potosi, Mexico, that can match Gadsden’s full-strength output of 6.2 million tyres annually but at lower costs.
Also See: Goodyear Expecting Massive Losses, Makes Plans To Restart Factories
The company's decision to close the plant was disclosed on April 23 in a Form 8-K that was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Papers filed by the Ohio-based company revealed that it had reached a deal with laborers six days prior to the filing to permanently close its plant at Gadsden.
Documents also reveal that the company accepted 740 buyouts at the massive factory last year while reports in February suggested that it had laid off about 100 people, leaving just around 410 people working at the factory.
Gadsden was one of five plants protected from closing through 2022 under a labor contract approved in 2017. That’s why union approval was necessary for the plant to be closed permanently.
Interestingly, the company had also announced that it would end production at the plant way back 1999, but a new labor deal had avoided a closure then as well.
About Goodyear Tire And Rubber Company: The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company is an American multinational tyre manufacturing company based in Akron,Ohio. Founded in 1898 by Frank Seiberling, Goodyear manufactures tyres for automobiles, commercial trucks, light trucks, motorcycles, SUVs, race cars, airplanes, farm equipment and heavy earth-mover machinery. The company also produced bicycle tyres until 1976. Goodyear is one of the top four tyre manufacturers in the world along with Bridgestone (Japan), Michelin (France) and Continental (Germany).
