Whirlpool to Add 200 Jobs After Trump Tariff Decision

Whirlpool appliances are offered for sale alongside other brands at a Home Depot store on Oct. 24, 2017 in Chicago, Illinois. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Whirlpool Corporation announced Tuesday that it will add 200 jobs to its Ohio facility after President Donald Trump’s administration placed a tariff on washing machines entering the United States.

Trump is expected to sign the tariff measure on Tuesday. The measure is aimed at competitors Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Electronics Inc., according to Crain’s Detroit Business.

The new employees will work at a factory in Clyde, Ohio. Whirlpool also promised to make more investments in manufacturing and innovation.

“This is a victory for American workers and consumers alike,” CEO Jeff Fettig said in a statement on Monday.

Jeff Fettig, chief executive officer of Whirlpool Corp speaks onstage Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City on April 4, 2013. (D Dipasupil/Getty Images for PFLAG)

“By enforcing our existing trade laws, President Trump has ensured American workers will compete on a level playing field with their foreign counterparts, enabled new manufacturing jobs here in America, and will usher in a new era of innovation for consumers everywhere,” Fettig added.

Whirlpool filed a safeguard petition last year, claiming that its South Korean rivals are illegally undercutting prices on washing machines. The petition, filed in May, is designed to help U.S. manufacturers against aggressive rivals selling products at excessively low prices.

Whirlpool’s stocks jumped 5 percent shortly after the announcement, CNBC reported.

On the campaign trail, Trump promised to protect and empower American manufacturers. Fettig was on Trump’s manufacturing council before it was disbanded.

President Donald Trump speaks at H&K Equipment in Coraopolis, Penn., on Jan. 18, 2018. (Charlotte Cuthbertson/The Epoch Times)

Whirlpool joins a growing number of companies who have boosted investment into the U.S. as a direct response to Trump economic policies.

More than 2 million American workers have already received, or will soon get, cash bonuses, pay raises, and other benefits as a result of Trump’s tax cuts, according to Americans for Tax Reform.

Trump’s comprehensive tax reform package was passed by Republicans. No Democrat supported it. The corporate tax rate was reduced to 21 percent under the new plan. The Treasury Department estimates that 90 percent of wage earners should begin to see more money on their paychecks as soon as mid-February.

On Tuesday, Disney and Verizon announced cash bonuses and stock grants respectively for employees as a result of tax reform.

Chief executive officer and chairman of The Walt Disney Company Bob Iger and Mickey Mouse look on before ringing the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange in New York City on Nov. 27, 2017. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Disney announced that it will give $1,000 bonuses to 125,000 employees, totaling $125 million. The company also said that it plans to invest $50 million into a fund that helps hourly employees with tuition costs. The company also committed $25 million annually to the tuition program.

Verizon announced that it will grant employees stocks worth approximately $2,600.

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