Published: June 18, 2009 08:07 pm      

Firestone employees told layoffs coming

Firestone Polymers announced at least 25-hourly employees will be laid off by next Friday yet the workers are not ready to give up their jobs quietly.

Tina Gaines, director of public affairs with Firestone Diversified Products LLC, said the layoffs are a result in demand for the company’s products.

“We project a slow move in the plastic markets and the tire markets through the rest of 2009 and into 2010,” Gaines said. “If people are not buying cars, we are not selling as many tires. You just don’t need as many people when this happens. It all depends on the markets.”

Ben Smith, a mechanic and president of the workman’s committee at Firestone, said the ones laid off will go in order of seniority.

“We go by plant seniority and not department seniority,” Smith said. “We go from the bottom of the list to the way up.”

Smith reported Orange’s plant was visited Wednesday by top Firestone officials and workers were applauded for the job they did after Hurricane Ike.

“Now today, the same ones applauded were the owns we told would be laid off,” Smith said. “We are embarrassed by this and we hope the company is too. We are going to over the next week try to prove the severity of these layoffs and the impact it will have. Some of these people are the same people who are also rebuilding their homes after the hurricane and not just the plant. Some of these guys are trying to rebuild their lives so it is a double blow.”

Smith confirmed there could also be contract workers laid off within the next week and because of the layoff system at Firestone, the income of those laid off makes it even tougher to lose jobs.

“They are the least likely to be able to handle losing their jobs,” Smith added. “It is a tough blow and we hope to show we can work around it completely by next Friday.”

Firestone sent out a press release Thursday evening which gave hope the facility will one day be able to return to full capacity.

“The production adjustment, which will be effective June 27 (the last day worked for affected teammates will be June 26), is intended to balance our production and inventory with demand,” Firestone said in a press release Thursday evening. “We will continue to evaluate the marketplace to determine when the Orange facility can return to previous production levels.”

The facility has about 160 employees which are represented by United Steel Workers Local No. 13-836. Firestone Polymers is owned by Bridgestone America Holdings Inc. which is located in Tennessee. The Orange facility produces synthetic rubber, approximately 65 percent of the product is sold to trade customers and 35 percent of the product is sold directly to Bridgestone Group tire plants.



Gabriel Pruett is the editor of The Orange Leader. He can be reached at (409)721-2818 or at gpruett@orangeleader.com