Employees of a Whirlpool plant in Evansville, Indiana say their jobs are being threatened by an executive. 1,100 workers at the plants are facing the imminent loss of their jobs at the end of March when positions are moved to Mexico to save money on labor costs.
Union representatives, the IUE-CWA Local 808, filed an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against Whirlpool on Friday. The lawsuit alleges that a statement in an internal newsletter by Paul Coburn, vice president of Whirlpool’s Evansville Division, threatened the remaining 300 workers’ jobs if they participate in a rally Friday to protest the massive job cuts.
According to the AFL-CIO, the statement by Coburn reads:
“…these negative activities will only ham¬per employees when they look for future jobs….We fear that potential employers will view the actions of a few and determine whether they would want to hire any of Evansville Division employees in the future.”
The local newspaper, the Evansville Courier-Press made a heartfelt plea on Friday to at least allow workers to express their discontent with the situation in a dignified manner.
“Please, Mr. Coburn. These people—your people at one time—are losing their jobs,” said the editorial. “Their careers, and with it, their dreams, are being cut short. At least allow them without intimidation the opportunity to express their frustrations in a peaceful protest.”
According to the local union, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, who will speak at the rally today, called Coburn’s statement a threat to personal freedoms.
“Whirlpool has taken the war against American workers to a new level by threatening to blacklist people who speak up,” said Trumka’s statement as it was republished by the AFL-CIO blog. “They don’t just want your job, they want your first amendment rights, too.”
The local union is responding to the job cuts with bitter resolve. They are also questioning the cuts, noting that on Feb. 2, Jeff Fettig, chairman and chief executive officer of Whirlpool Corporation, announced that Whirlpool had met and exceeded their financial goals for 2009.
In a statement to members at the February members’ meeting, union leadership had bitter words for Whirlpool.
“If there was ever any doubt in anyone’s mind how Whirlpool feels about the people that work for them, this should relieve that now,” said Darrell Collins, local union president in a statement to members. “It is clear that all they care about is the money. These 1,100 hourly people, the 400 salary people and the community should take comfort in the fact that you are expendable to make a dollar.”
Collins also noted in the same statement that workers who lose their jobs will not receive the standard weeks pay for each year of service.
Friends Read Free