|
|
|
|
Press Releases
Canadian
Plants Will Reject Goodyear Offer Goodyear said it has made a proposal to its Canadian workers and is awaiting a response. Goodyear has two plants in Toronto and plants in Collingwood and Owen Sound. This agreement does not validates the solidarity of our canadian members and their families, who wouldn't allow the company to walk away from obligations earned through a lifetime of hard work and loyalty. The union wants all plants protected from closing. This agreement does not provide that. According to this agreement Retread Center in Toronto is to be closed. No plant security for Collingwood and Logistics Center in Toronto. Massive lay-offs scheduled for Collingwood and some for Owen Sound. The Tentative Agreement will not be endorsed by the Canadian USW’s Negotiation Team, made up of local union leaders from Owen Sound, Collingwood, Logistics Center and Store338 Toronto. On the contrary they will recommend for this strike to go on until canadians demands are met as well as american's. The union plans a ratification vote on Dec. 28, and the strike will continue until a contract is ratified.
TWO
WORK-RELATED ACCIDENTS REPORTED AT GOODYEAR PLANT Ambulance personnel responded to reports that a worker's hand had been injured and that another worker's arm had been caught in equipment. The United Steelworkers of America, the union representing Goodyear workers, began a strike Oct. 5 after an agreement could not be reached with the company on a new master contract. Some temporary workers and management personnel are operating the plant. Efforts to reach Goodyear officials at the Tyler plant Wednesday afternoon were unsuccessful. Ed Markey, Goodyear corporate spokesman, confirmed the injuries. "I can confirm two injuries today at the end of the first shift," Markey said. "One was a hand injury and the other was a broken arm." Names of the injured workers were not released. It was unclear whether one or both of the injured people were temporary workers hired by Goodyear to work during the strike or union members that crossed the picket line. Harold Sweat, vice president of USW Local 746L, which represents the Tyler Goodyear workers, said 41 union members had crossed the picket line since the strike began. About 980 union members in Tyler began the strike, Sweat said, but some have opted for retirement. Jim Wansley, Local 746L president, said the injuries did not surprise him. "Putting scabs in those plants will inevitably result in them getting hurt and them producing tires that put the public at risk," Wansley said. "Factories are inherently dangerous under the best of circumstances. Putting the volume of people in one as Goodyear has done cannot help but result in injuries." Wansley was in Pittsburgh, where negotiations resumed Monday on the master contract. The strike centered on the tire maker's refusal to keep the Tyler plant open and offer a retiree health benefit plan satisfactory to the union. "We're still apart on a number of issues, including Tyler," Wansley said Wednesday. "We're talking today and we're scheduled to talk tomorrow." After the strike began, Goodyear announced it would close the Tyler plant, and its third-quarter report included restructuring charges of $107 million in the plant's closure.
Inventory
Concerns Some Tire
Dealers As Talks Resume Strike-hampered Goodyear and the United Steelworkers went back to formal talks Monday for the second time during the 2 1/2-month job action, while some dealers expressed concern over possible tire shortages for the coming winter. "Fortunately the weather has been quite unseasonably warm here, so the demand has not been as high, but when it's cold and snowy that's always one of our busiest times of the year," said Chris Huddle, owner of Huddle Tire Co. in Lancaster in southeast Ohio. He said shortage concerns are mainly over tires for light trucks and sport utility vehicles. Doug Carter, manager of the Goodyear Auto Service Center in Union City, said the tire situation has been good, and hopefully it will stay that way. "We've had a real good supply the last three months. We had a good supply when the strike started and we're holding pretty good," he said. "Throughout he ordeal we've kept a good inventory. We've been able to fill most orders for our customers. "If we are short or out of something temporarily, most of our customers give us a day or two to get it. We have availability. We're close to Memphis and Nashville, so we have a large hub we can pull tires out of. Hopefully we can keep everything moving." Carter said he doesn't foresee a shortage. "I just hope they go ahead and get everything worked out," he said, referring to the Goodyear strike, which includes the Union City plant. Larry Levister, tire manager for Reynolds Brothers Tire Co., in Union City, could not be reached for comment. Other input A sampling of tire stores Monday revealed similar inventory concerns and some switching to brands other than Goodyear. "Being a multi-brand dealer, I've had to shift into other brands so I don't lose business," Huddle said. "So it hasn't hurt my bottom line." He said there is also concern that Goodyear's inventory may be short for several months even if the strike ends soon. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., the world's third-largest tiremaker, and the Steelworkers agreed Friday to resume negotiations on a new labor deal. The union represents 15,000 workers who went on strike Oct. 5 from 12 U.S. and four Canadian plants, including one in Union City. The number of striking workers includes 1,200 inactive union members on layoff, sick leave or injury time off. Talks resumed in Pittsburgh, where the union is based. The most recent negotiations in Cincinnati broke off Nov. 17 after four days. The union and Goodyear have disagreed over health care proposals for retirees and plans to close a Tyler, Texas, tire factory. Goodyear spokesman Ed Markey said dealer concerns did not drive the decision to resume talks. "I can't characterize the substance of the talks," he said. Steelworkers spokesman Wayne Ranick said the union expected revised Goodyear proposals. Goodyear has sought to maintain production using supervisors, temporary workers and strikers who returned to work. It has planned to maintain inventory with tires produced outside North America. "Our production is at about 50 percent of pre-strike levels," Markey said. "Some types and size of tires are less plentiful than others, but more products come online everyday as we increase staffing and production." He said the company is determined to maintain tire quality. At a Goodyear Auto Service Center in Topeka, Kan., manager Jim Bernard said he hasn't had trouble with his tire supply, though he has had to look more often at different brand names to fill some orders. "We're just being smarter about the way we order," he said. He said tire quality "hasn't even been an issue."
Steelworkers
Rally Against Goodyear About 75 Steelworkers gathered in front of the Purcell Tire store at 2248 Madison Ave. in Granite City for two hours Saturday. "The atmosphere was one of anger about what Goodyear is trying to do," said Dave Dowling, a union representative for District 7 of the United Steelworkers. The Steelworkers have been on strike since Oct. 5 and are calling for better health care plans for retired workers and a stop to outsourcing of jobs to other countries, Dowling said. The St. Louis area has no Goodyear plants, but Steelworkers formerly made up a large chunk of the region's work force. At the rally Saturday, workers were on hand from U.S. Steel and American Steel, both in Granite City; Air Products, a company that produces and transports gases such as oxygen and nitrogen, also in Granite City; and Cerro Flow, formerly Cerro Copper, in Sauget. Also attending the rally were members of the American Postal Workers Union, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers and the Communications Workers of America. From Sauget to Alton, there are about 3,000 Steelworkers. In the southern half of Illinois, there are about 7,000 union workers, said Dowling, who worked at Granite City Steel for 28 years. More than 150 similar rallies were held around the country Saturday, including events in Bloomington, Joliet and Chicago. In Granite City, Dowling said customers walking into the tire store were concerned about outsourcing, which union supporters say has sharply contributed to the decrease of the American middle class. "I think the American people are very, very disturbed about the loss of manufacturing jobs in this country," Dowling said. "People sense that the middle class is under attack." However, on Friday, Goodyear announced it was ready to return to the bargaining table after negotiations stopped three weeks ago. "We don't know whether the company was trying to slow rallies by trying to meet or whether they are coming to the table in good faith, but we will know Monday," Dowling said.
Union
Members Support Goodyear Strike "This is just another action against American workers and corporate greed where they're more concerned about the bottom line than good healthy jobs here in the United States," said John Scardella, United Steel Workers Grant Staff. "We can't compete with wages in China. They work for 42 cents an hour," said Lowville Union President Roger Turck.
"Making tires is not just throwing together some rubber and making them into a circle. It's a highly skilled technological job," said Union Representative Jim Ridgeway. But Goodyear says it's still producing quality tires at every factory. A statement on the company's web site says:
But the steelworkers say it's not just Goodyear jobs at stake. They say if outsourcing happens at one company, it could happen anywhere. "It will not only affect our jobs, but it will affect all other jobs. Companies will actually see this happening. That this is an effective way of moving jobs across the pond. And we'll continue to lose jobs," said Scardella.
GREEDY, GENERALLY ROTTEN GOODYEAR FOR GRINCH!
This year the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company is leading the pack but we still need your votes to ensure that Goodyear is awarded the “Grinch of the Year” award, reserved for the grouchiest, greediest, and generally worst corporate neighbor in North America. Vote online at www.jwj.org/grinch Polls close December 20 For day to day updates on the strike checkout www.goodyearsolidarity.blogspot.com  This information is being distributed for purely informational purposes. We are not asking or suggesting that any person engage in a strike against his or her employer or refuse in the course of his or her employment to use, manufacture, process or transport or otherwise handle or work on any goods, articles, materials or commodities or perform any service. With questions, call Patrick Young at 412-562-2424.
Striking
Employees Count The Cost At
the Patterson's home in Elma, the stockings are 'hung by the chimney with
care, but the list for Santa is shorter than usual. Taylor and Dillon Patterson have cut back on their Christmas wishes because their father, Dale, hasn't worked in more than two months. He's one of the 1,200 on strike at the Dunlop Plant in Tonawanda. They're fighting the company's proposal to change benefits for retirees. "Are they really going to take care of the retirees? Because I worked there all my life, and now, am I going to have to pay all kinds of medical?" said Dale Patterson. His decision means wife Kathy is knitting her Christmas gifts...and stretching the family's 100 dollar a week grocery budget. Extra expenses are out. "You just have to pray that no one gets sick, or if they get sick, you just don't go to the doctor", said Kathy Patterson. Now, the Pattersons are preparing to take their boys out of West Seneca Christian school. They can't make tuition payments. "I don't want to leave," said Dillon. Are we going to have any income at all?†asked Taylor. Dale Patterson has worries of his own, but he says he just expects the company that he's helped succeed to help him take care of his family. "There are many people who have been loyal at Dunlop and given of themselves and taken pay cuts, and now it's sort of like getting slapped in the face," he said. Goodyear/Dunlop says its proposals do not cut wages, they restore pension service credits, and include only minor increases to employee health care premiums. The company says it's ready to resume negotiations at any point with the United Steelworkers Union.
Union
Members Respond To Editorial Message The
editorial comment from Modern Tire Dealer Editor Bob Ulrich ("Union
lacks respect for differing views," Dec. 3, 2006) sparked many viewpoints,
particularly from United Steelworkers (USW) union members on strike. "Sir, you are right, when a strike has been called, a union only sees in black and white, win or lose. I am a Goodyear employee and a union member for the past 36 years. I do not know if you have factory experience? I do not have sales or management experience, except for working under management and having to live in the work environment which they create. "I started with Goodyear as 'URW' (United Rubber Workers), and now we are 'USW.' The URW, right or wrong, fought everything and a strike was their main answer. Things changed with the USW; they tried to be a partner to Goodyear. The USW has done long-range studies and reports of almost every thing about Goodyear. The USW has studied Goodyear's debt load and debt structure, and has made positive suggestions on debt reduction. Major New York banks holding Goodyear debt have made similar suggestions. "The union has studied Goodyear's medical cost, and has compared systems used in different plants and systems used outside Goodyear. The union has been out in front in finding ways to cut Goodyear's medical cost. The union – USW -- that I see on Goodyear's plant floor is working every day for safety, trying to save life and limb and lower medical compensation cost. The union that I see on the plant floor is trying to improve quality and improve production. This new type of union knows more about the operations of Goodyear than Goodyear does, and that is the problem! "Do your readers remember Stanley Gault? In six years, he made Goodyear number one, the best at everything in the rubber industry -- the best cash flow, the highest profits of any tire maker then or now. Gault has retired; the new management team has dismantled all the principles that Gault operated by. The new management team has replaced and pushed out any management voices that disagreed and who wanted to continue Gault's policies. Have you ever heard 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it!'? Well, this new management completely re-did the manufacturing structure inside the Goodyear plants after Gault retired, and everything has crashed and burned and landed upside down in the side ditch (since) they took over! "Workload went up, hourly compensation went down. Days off were changed. Parents found themselves forced to work Sunday's and holidays, with their children home without them. Morale hit an all-time low. And this also includes lower management, for now they make less than us. Their wages have been cut. Their benefits have been cut. Goodyear has even cut their pension in half. And now retired supervisors are working through a temp agency doing their old job at one-half their old pay, working for no benefits and their pension frozen. Any extra years worked at Goodyear add nothing to your pension. "This is what Goodyear has done to their own management. They were first! I or we are next. The new Goodyear management has refused to listen to proven Goodyear corporate leaders and has cast them aside. The new Goodyear management has refused to listen to proven financial leaders on Wall Street and at major New York banks. And now Goodyear finds itself forced to borrow overseas capital at inflated interest rates. The new Goodyear management has cast aside all the knowledge and experience of its lower and middle managers in favor of the lowest cost and no-experience temp workers. "And lastly, Goodyear's new management wants all of its hourly workers to be flexible enough to give up one-half their pay, most of their benefits, and most of their pension. And the most that Goodyear will promise is to try to keep a few of these flexible workers here in America, as Goodyear proceeds with its plans to relocate overseas. "Stanley Gault once made a taped announcement to all Goodyear employees – management and union. Mr. Gault said, 'The most valuable asset that any company can have is a skilled, dedicated and loyal work force. Without this, no company can hope to succeed and prosper into the future.' He went on to thank each and every one of us for our team effort, from the machine cleaner to the (president). Goodyear's success had been a team, not an individual, effort! The team is dead. Outsiders may see all this as simply a labor dispute, but the people on the floor see this as life and death. "This company, 'Goodyear,' is dying. It is rotten at the top. The people at the top are unwilling or unable to run Goodyear as a profitable American company. We must force a change. We must force them out if this company has any hope of surviving in the future. If it has no future, then we who have devoted our entire lives to it will have no future either! Thank you for your time." Herlon Smith, Martin, Tenn. * "Dear Sir, I just finished reading your editorial on the mindset of the leadership of the United Steelworkers regarding the current strike with Goodyear. I feel that your (magazine) has been reporting the details of the strike in a fair manner, but what the company wants to do the workforce -- that's us, the people actually making the tires -- is abominable. Somehow, it's not big news that the guys at the top pull in multimillion dollar salaries and bonuses while expecting the people working the floor jobs to happily accept the slashing of wages and benefits. THIS is what Goodyear execs call job stability and being competitive? "I may work in a factory, but I'm not so dumb to think that's in my best interest. We as a company need to focus on reinvesting in our American workforce first if we are to survive. I just turned 38 years old, and I have no faith in the leadership of this company to see to it that we're still in business when it's my time to retire. The union isn't perfect by far, but at least I know that they're thinking of my best interest." * "I can see why the union officials are not respectful of you. You have no clue as to what is going on. Just from your take on the situation, anyone can see you haven't even glanced at the union workers' side of the story. When you have 15,000 workers on picket duty, it is hard to get them all to be non-violent. But most are peaceful. "If we are rude to your one-sided posting of Goodyear's position, which is actually to take our jobs to communist China, and to dump its obligation to its retirees, it is because we can't afford to be wrong. It is our livelihood. We have spent a lifetime learning about the greed and corruption of Goodyear's management the hard way, where as you seem to be looking at them through anti-union rose-colored glasses." * "Your (editorial) is upsetting to me, as I'm sure to all USW union members. To base your total opinion on one unfortunate phone call, in itself, is narrow minded. We are standing up for all Americans. We have taken a stand where others have just decided to take what they're offered. For this we need to be commended, not criticized. "For years our members have made concessions, pay cuts, benefit increases. We have done so without complaints, and have worked harder to make Goodyear a more profitable company. We have watched as not only Goodyear, but other factories, and businesses, have gone overseas with all the profits our years of hard work have given them. "Goodyear now wishes to close yet another factory, and also wants to simply dismiss their promise to current and future retirees. We cannot, and will not allow this. We ARE looking at the bigger picture, and know that no good can come from fewer American jobs. So please take care in what you publicly proclaim. Your job may be next, on the list of foreign want ads."
Union
Employees Demonstrate In Rockford
“Are you going to let scab workers make faulty tires?,” USW District 7 organizer Robin Rich asked the crowd. “No,” came the reply. The event was part of a nation-wide effort by USW, which represents workers at Titan Tire in Freeport, to inform the public about labor disputes at 15 of Goodyear's North American plants. On Oct. 5, the labor rift forced 15,000 USW tire workers to strike over healthcare and pension cuts. In 2005, Goodyear sold its Freeport operation, then known as Kelly Springfield, to Titan. But although all new hires at the plant have no connection to the tire giant, 550 retired employees and 300 at the plant either have or will qualify for Goodyear retirement packages. Under the contract that Goodyear is currently proposing, all Goodyear retirees would no longer receive company health insurance. And says Steve Vanderheyden, President of USW Local 745 of Freeport, Goodyear has already forced retirees to pay more for their healthcare. “Their premiums for 2007 have already seen a dramatic increase,” he said. “Goodyear sent them packages last month that showed premium increases beginning in January. In most cases premiums were 3 to 4 times more than what they were paying in 2006.” One local retiree who may lose his health insurance is Edward “Bud” Gaulrapp of Pearl City, Freeport Mayor George Gaulrapp's brother. Gaulrapp worked for the Freeport plant for 25 years before recently retiring. “I still have a daughter that's going to nursing school and one left in high school,” he said, “When people retire they should be locked in. I don't care what company they work for.” Kim Kopp of Ridott, who has worked at the Freeport plant for 31 years and qualifies for Goodyear's retirement package, hopes news of the contract struggle resonates with the public. “I'm sure if they were in our shoes they wouldn't want this to happen to them,” he said, “It's un-American and it's unethical.”But even though benefit cuts are at the heart of USW's struggle with Goodyear, demonstrators on Saturday focused on the task at hand: telling people they ought to think twice about buying a Goodyear tire made by a replacement worker. The union is pushing results of a study completed by Princeton in 2002 to make its case. It reportedly examined the recall two years before of 14.4 million Firestone tires made during labor disputes in which replacement workers were hired. The study reportedly concluded that 40 of the 271 fatalities caused by those tires were the result of an “excessive number of problem tires produced,” during the labor dispute. “We know it takes along time to learn how to build a good tire,” said Vanderheyden into a megaphone. “It takes anywhere from three to nine months to qualify. It's our obligation to tell the buying community about that.” But Goodyear spokesman Ed Markey said Friday that no matter what USW says, the tires Goodyear is making with replacement tires are safe. “Goodyear will never compromise quality.” said Markey, “In every plant 100 percent of our tires are being screened for quality before they leave the factory, on top of that we have systems and procedures to insure quality and those systems were in place now, just as they were before the strike.” Markey added that replacement workers who are currently making tires are receiving training and that in some cases, tires are actually being built by the engineers responsible for designing them. Yet those statements failed to assure Vanderheyden that the tires Goodyear is currently producing. “The training time for us when we were Goodyear was three to nine months,” said Vanderheyden, “and that was to give one the minimum requirements necessary, it typically would become years to become proficient.”
Union
Leaders Call For Product Boycott; Goodyear Presses On
He simply wrote in an e-mail to The Messenger, "The boycott is in effect." The union posted in a solidarity alert on its Web site Saturday that it has used its tool of a voluntary strike, but that the company has hired replacement workers. The alert states, "There is yet another tool that workers may encourage — boycott." Hicks told The Messenger on Monday that union members are concerned that these replacement workers are not trained and that one mistake could cause a tire to have a blow out. "One concern we do have is when Bridgestone-Firestone hired replacement workers a lot of their tires blew out," he said. "We don't want this to happen to Goodyear." Hicks said the union does not want customers to receive tires which have the quality of the product in question. If subquality tires are being produced by the replacement workers, something Hicks said could happen by an unqualified worker making one mistake anywhere down the line, then Goodyear could possibly be forced to have a recall. "We don't want Goodyear to have to make a recall," he said. Goodyear spokesman Ed Markey said, "Our focus is on nothing other than running our business and making the high quality tires that people expect from Goodyear. "The facts are that we are adding staff every day, we are increasing our domestic production of tires every day and we are importing more tires every day from our global manufacturing base. All of those tires meet Goodyear's same high standards of quality." In the e-mail, Hicks said the union is having a union rally on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. at the Union City Civic Auditorium. He said it is for union members only and will include discussion of the strike and upcoming events. Negotiations began between the two groups in early June, but broke down and the union members went on strike Oct. 5. Markey said no new talks have been scheduled.
Bridgestone
Acquires Bandag Tire Firm Shares
rise after $1.05 billion takeover of U.S. firm announced
Bandag, founded in 1957, sells retreading equipment and materials and owns tire retail and service operations. Bridgestone will pay $50.75 a share in cash for all classes of Bandag stock, 13 percent more than the common stock's closing price Monday. Bridgestone will gain a network of more than 900 dealers in almost 100 countries, helping it compete with Michelin and Goodyear Tire & Rubber for sales of reconditioned tires. "Bridgestone is trying to accelerate its business strategy in the main overseas markets such as North America and Europe," said Yoshihiro Okumura, a general manager at Chiba-gin Asset Management. "Mergers and acquisitions seem to be the most efficient way to boost business size and strengthen expertise quickly." Last month, Bridgestone said it would reach its target profit margin of 5 percent by 2010, two years later than planned, because it was increasing spending to meet demand caused by surging vehicle sales in China, India and other developing markets. Buying Bandag could help Bridgestone compete against Goodyear, the largest U.S. tire maker, which offers truck tire retreading services through its stores and dealers. "The similarities in the companies' business models, distribution networks, customer base and respect for employees make this a perfect fit," Mark Emkes, the head of Bridgestone's U.S. unit, said in a statement. Bridgestone last year became the world's largest seller of tires for the first time since 2000, according to a survey by Tire Business, an industry magazine in Ohio. It had an 18.2 percent share in the global tire market, surpassing Michelin, which had a 17.7 percent share.
Bandag also owns and runs the Tire Distribution System retail unit that sells new and retread tires. The company also holds 87.5 percent of Speedco, a provider of lubrication and tire service to commercial trucks along highways. Through three quarters of this year, Bandag's sales rose 9.1 percent to $727.6 million and its net income fell 76 percent to $9.03 million, in part because of a $16.4 million loss on discontinued operations. Bandag has been trying to cut costs to raise profit. The company in June began offering early retirement buyouts. The company had 3,788 employees at the end of last year. Bridgestone on Nov. 1 posted a 70 percent decline in third-quarter profit, to ¥17.24 billion on rising costs for rubber and oil. Sales rose 11 percent to 738.2 billion yen. Since peaking in July, the price for rubber futures traded in Singapore fell 35 percent to 158.25 cents per kilogram, or 71.93 cents a pound, Tuesday. The price was 2 percent lower than a year ago. In October, 2005, Bridgestone agreed to pay Ford Motor $240 million to end a five-year dispute over tire failures for Explorer sport utility vehicles. Bridgestone's Firestone unit recalled 6.5 million tires in August 2000 as U.S. safety officials linked the tires to 203 deaths. Bridgestone's profit in the third quarter declined in comparison to a year earlier when profit was inflated after the company cut cash reserves that had been set aside for settling U.S. lawsuits involving failures of Firestone- brand tires. JPMorgan Chase of New York was Bridgestone's adviser in the Bandag transaction. William Blair, a consultancy in Chicago, advised Bandag.
Posted
on Tue, Dec. 05, 2006
Akron was the first stop in a series of meetings Conway and other high-ranking USW members will be having at all strike locations in the United States and Canada to talk about the state of negotiations and the union's stance since 15,000 USW members went on strike Oct. 5. Main sticking points have revolved around health benefits, including those for retirees, and keeping all of Goodyear's plants open. Conway, speaking after the closed meeting, had harsh words for Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.'s top executives. ``They're about to wreck a good company,'' he said. ``We know no company can take all the costs of health care. We're not ignorant of what's going on with health care in America. These guys just want to get rid of it.'' Conway said the Steelworkers are willing to go back and bargain with Goodyear. But he said Goodyear's latest proposal to put a one-time $660 million payment into an independent health-care trust, with no more funding to come, is unrealistic because the company has already said its health-care obligations are $1.2 billion. That proposal was aimed largely at Wall Street investors, he said. ``It's about saying we got (retiree health-care)legacy costs off the books,'' Conway said. ``They (made the proposal) a week before they went out on a bond offer. They knew there was no deal there at $660 million. I think it was a sham and the (Securities and Exchange Commission) ought to investigate them.''
A Goodyear spokesman said there was no relationship between the company's health-care proposal and the issuing of the bonds. According to a company statement, ``those two items are totally unrelated. Our entire offer -- more than 250 pages -- was posted on our Web site on Nov. 9 and included such details as the initial contribution to the (trust), a specific amount for capital investment in union plants, new wage scales and health-care costs.'' In a recent newspaper column, Goodyear North American Tire Division President Jon Rich said the company is willing to negotiate the details of the proposed trust. But he also wrote that Goodyear cannot change its stance on its decision to close in 2007 its Tyler, Texas, tire plant, where 1,100 union members work. Goodyear has said it decided to stop making the kinds of low-profit, wholesale private label tires that the Tyler plant produces. Tim Shackelford, a Rootstown resident who has worked eight years in what is called the Akron factory's ``calendar room,'' said the Steelworkers did the right thing by having their chief negotiator meet with and answer questions from the rank and file. ``I think some people (in Akron) got a little restless that they're not down there negotiating,'' Shackelford said. ``This reassured them the Steelworkers are doing what they can. I think they need to have these things weekly or every other week to keep the troops up.'' Rich Dudones, 49, of Uniontown, who makes Goodyear tire treads, said the union has to stay with the fight. His mother-in-law, 80, whose late husband worked 45 years for Goodyear, is ``scared to death'' that she will lose her Goodyear benefits, he said. ``I won't give up the retirees. It just can't happen,'' he said. ``I'm not looking for anything for myself.'' John Finlaw, another Goodyear tread maker, said the strike is more peaceful than other strikes he has been involved in, even though he thinks Goodyear's proposals are unrealistic. The Ellet resident, 64, said he has has worked 32 years with Goodyear. ``We're being very cordial,'' Finlaw said. ``It's not a barroom thing like it's been in the past.'' Uniontown resident Ray Guthier, who mixes rubber, said that in the 35 years he has worked for Goodyear, he's been ``too many times on picket.'' But he said he came out of Monday's meeting saying he ``learned the company is a little more ruthless than I thought it was.''
Recent Media Coverage of Good Year Strike
|
|
|
It was
hard to miss their signs Saturday morning. In bold colors, United Steelworkers
told drivers that Goodyear tire is outsourcing production and they don't
like it.
Union
members say the company plans to close its plant in Tyler, Texas, and
is already expanding overseas in China. Steelworkers say turning to cheaper
labor, as well as using replacements for those on strike, could compromise
quality and public safety.
"Through
the strike, our focus is where it always is, on delivering great value
to our customers... Our procedures, systems and technology personnel ensure
that every Goodyear product meets our quality standards. If we let our
customers down during this strike, there will not be jobs to return to
when it ends."
VOTE
GROUCHY,
Standing
on mounds ice and snow in front of Just Tires on East State Street, United
Steel Workers from Freeport and across the region waved American flags,
shouted slogans at prospective customers and passersby, and held signs.
Willis
Hicks, contract action team coordinator for the United Steelworkers of
America Local 878, confirmed Tuesday that the union is calling for a boycott
of Goodyear products. 
Shares
in Bridgestone, based in Tokyo, rose to ¥2,550, or $22.20, a day after
it announced the $1.05 billion acquisition of the U.S. company Bandag.
Bridgestone's U.S. unit intends to borrow "all the funds" for
the purchase, Shoshi Arakawa, president of Bridgestone, said in Tokyo.
Bandag
has 45 percent of the U.S. truck tire retreading business, according to
the trade publication Modern Tire Dealer. Goodyear is in second place
with 26.5 percent, followed by Michelin at about 12 percent.
Negotiator
Tom Conway, Steelworkers International vice president in charge of Goodyear
negotiations, met with more than 200 members of Local 2 for about two
hours Monday afternoon at the union's Kelly Avenue hall. The local has
about 470 members who make race tires in Goodyear's Akron factory.
Goodyear
on Nov. 21 announced it had sold about $1 billion in bonds, with about
half of the proceeds going to pay down other debt and the balance available
for general corporate purposes, including strike-related issues.
