FORT EDWARD -- The General Electric Co. plant in Fort Edward will suspend operations for several weeks in March and April, union officials there said on Friday.
The proposal has not been formally announced yet, said Bruce Reese, a plant employee and the business manager for the local 332 of the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers union.
Employees were briefed on the proposal by the plant's local managers on Thursday, he said.
Tentative plans are to suspend operations for approximately half of the plant's 204 workers for the last three weeks in March.
"They want to keep the back end of the plant working to meet end-of-quarter obligations," Reese said.
In April, the back end operations of the plant will be shut down for two weeks.
The plant's work schedule shows no orders during those three weeks in March, said Bill Donohue, the union's recording secretary.
"For three weeks we have zero orders and after that it doesn't look much better either," Donohue said. "I've worked here 36 years and when business is bad, they'll have shutdowns and hope work comes in."
The last time work stopped at the plant was just before the Christmas holiday. Work also was halted around Thanksgiving, Donohue said.
The news of the impending furloughs comes as the facility is bracing for 32 layoffs in two departments.
Reese said he would be meeting with plant managers later this month to pitch a retirement incentive plan to limit the impact of the layoffs.
The company is proposing to stop making two product lines manufactured in Fort Edward. The polypropylene film and the small component capacitor manufacturing departments would be eliminated.
"It's like a perfect storm," Donohue said. "It's all happening at once."
Employees will likely seek unemployment benefits to recoup some of their lost wages while they are out of work, Donohue said.
A GE spokeswoman said no formal plan for halting work at the plant has been made.
"We are considering adjusting the manufacturing schedule at the plant but no final decisions have been made yet," said company spokeswoman Milissa Rocker. "The final decision will made in the next couple of weeks."
Posted in Local on Friday, February 5, 2010 7:05 pm
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