Goodyear to axe jobs by closing Texas plant

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., the largest U.S. tire maker is planning to axe 1,100 jobs by closing its Tyler plant, in Texas. The news of its closure has brought anger and frustration among the workers who claim to have done everything possible to help the company in the last few years including pay cuts, benefit concessions and efficient productivity.

After months of talks with the world's third-biggest tire maker about 12,000 workers nationwide went on a strike from Oct.5. Jim Taylor, a 26-year employee who was one among them, said, “I feel very frustrated and very let down.”

The battle between Goodyear and the Steelworkers union got further intensified with the news as the union said it “strongly condemned'” the plant closing and called the plan “a further example of management's foolish notion that believes it can shrink a company to prosperity.''

“Goodyear has to cut capacity and there is no way around it,'' said Shelly Lombard, a Montclair, New Jersey-based high- yield debt analyst at independent research firm Gimme Credit Publications. “They can't make and sell low-end tires profitably in the U.S. This is something that has to be done despite the impact on the strike.''

Mostly tires for smaller cars and light trucks are made in the plant which is one of the largest sources of jobs in this town. “Goodyear doesn't need union approval to close the Tyler plant because the labor contract expired July 22”, said Ed Markey, a company spokesman.

The company said that in order to remain competitive, it is obligatory for it to shut down the plant. "We must take the steps necessary to reduce our costs and improve our competitive position," Jon Rich, president of North American Tire, said in a statement. "While this is an extremely difficult decision for everyone involved, it was required to help turn around our North American business."

The Akron, Ohio-based company said in a statement today that with the shutdown it expected to save about $50 million a year. The date of closure has not been decided yet.