AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT TIMKEN (09/23/21)

Stephen Levine November 5, 2019

Am I Next? Timken moving operations from South Carolina.

SEPTEMBER 23, 2021 — 240 LAYOFFS AT DIAMOND CHAIN FACILITY IN INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA

Timken announced plans to close its Diamond Chain subsidiary, a maker of roller chains used in a variety of industries, including automotive, agriculture, and industrial manufacturing, which it acquired in April 2019. The closure will impact 240 employees in phases commencing November 26, 2021.

Operations located at the Indianapolis, Indiana plant will be transferred to its Drives chain facilities in Fulton, Illinois, and Clinton, Iowa.

NOVEMBER 5, 2019 — Original post…

North Canton, Ohio-based Timken Company, a manufacturer of bearings and associated components, has announced their intentions to transfer their high volume bearing and roller production from the Gaffney, South Carolina plant to other Timken facilities with additional capacity. Approximately 150 employees will be affected over a phased nine-month process.

According to a company spokesperson…

“At Timken, we continually review our operations and global manufacturing footprint to ensure we are providing the best possible value and service to our customers.

We continue to see challenging conditions across many markets that we serve from our Gaffney, South Carolina, plant. After careful consideration, we have made some restructuring decisions that will reduce overall employment at our Gaffney facility by approximately 150 positions over the next nine months. While we expect many of these reductions will be achieved through attrition and retirements, we will provide support to help those affected by this change including, employment opportunities at other Timken manufacturing plants, outplacement services, benefits continuation and retention pay.

While difficult, these changes are required to streamline operations and restructure our manufacturing footprint to better compete in a global market.”

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?

AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT REGAL BELOIT (06/30/21)

Stephen Levine October 31, 2019

JUNE 30, 2021 — CONTINUING LAYOFFS AS COMPANY MOVES TOWARD FULL CLOSURE

The company is laying off more workers on July 30, 2021, following layoffs in May and June as it finishes the last remaining orders for the Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter. The full closure could come as early as September 2021.

SEPTEMBER 12, 2020 — PLANT CLOSURE IN VALPARAISO, INDIANA WITH 86 LAYOFFS

The company has decided to permanently shutter its helicopter bearing factory located in Valparaiso, Indiana.

The closure will affect 86 employees, with layoffs commencing when operations cease in May 2021, and with full plant closure expected in November 2021.

Some employees suggest that the closure is in response to a 3-month strike by unionized employees.

DECEMBER 3, 2019 — REGAL BELOIT LAYING OFF 60 IN CLINTON, WISCONSIN.

The company has announced that it will be shutting down activities in its Clinton, Wisconsin facility over the next six months with closure scheduled for June 2020.

According to a company spokesperson, “This decision has not been made lightly and we appreciate that it has a very real effect on both individuals and the broader community in Clinton.

NOVEMBER 2, 2019 — REGAL BELOIT TO SHUTTER WEST PLAINS, MISSOURI OPERATION

The company has announced that it will be laying off 204 employees in its West Plains, Missouri manufacturing facility and transitioning s operations to the company’s other facilities. The phased move is scheduled to commence in January 2020 and be completed by May 2020.

According to a company spokesperson, “The West Plains closure is part of the company’s long-term restructuring plans designed to keep the company competitive in the global marketplace.

OCTOBER 31, 2019 — Original Post…

Beloit, Wisconsin-based Regal Beloit, a manufacturer of electric motors and components, has announced that they will be closing their helicopter bearing manufacturing facility in Valparaiso, Indiana, and laying ofF up to 170 employees. The company has negotiated a final settlement with its union, the International Association of Machinists & Aerospace Workers, whose employees were on strike until August 2019 over wages and healthcare costs. The exact timing of the closure is pending. According to a company spokesperson, “No closure date has been set, as Regal is working to fulfill its obligations to customers and other stakeholders.

The company informed the union of its plans to discontinue our operations at this facility, exit certain products, and move the remaining work to our Monticello, Indiana, plant. This was not a decision that we made lightly, and a number of factors were considered including customer orders, inventory levels, and overall plant efficiency. We will continue to rely on our contingency plan in order to provide our customers with the highest quality products and service."

AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT GATES CORPORATION

Stephen Levine October 18, 2019

Am I Next? Layoffs at Gates Corporation restructuring.

Denver, Colorado-based Gates Corporation,a manufacturer of power transmission belts and fluid power products, has announced that they are in the process of repurposing their Galesburg, Illinois facility from, hose production to a core compounding mill to produce rubber to be sent to other facilities. This will impact approximately 120 employees over a 14 month time period.

According to a company spokesperson…

“The move to transition, and cut jobs, in Galesburg is not driven by performance or overall financial viability. Businesses are constantly looking at how to be more operational, more efficient, and this happens to be one of those business decisions. The decision to transition the facility from hose production to core compounding, which means the facility would produce the rubber to be sent to other facilities, is a business decision.Approximately 120 union and non-union employees will be let go over the course of 14 months/ It’s simply to further the growth strategy of our business so turning our facility — it was one of our core compounding facilities a long time ago — we’re bringing it back to that to supply the rubber to our other facilities. We will keep the distribution center there. Hose production will be moved to other North American facilities where hose production is more in line with our strategic operations vision for this line of business. The Galesburg Gates facility will have about 100 employees once the layoffs are finished in about 14 months.”