DATELINE; CHICAGO, ILLINOIS
1:02AM EASTERN TIME
GE TRANSPORTATION TO CLOSE DOWN LOCOMOTIVE MANUFACTURING PLANT IN ERIE, PENNSYLVANIA.
WITH RECORD ORDERS, AND ALREADY FAR BEHIND SCHEDULE. GE TRANSPORTATION IS MAKING THE HIGHLY UNUSUAL MOVE OF NOTIFYING THE UNION WORK FORCE AT THEIR ERIE,PENNYSYLVANIA LOCOMOTIVE MANUFACTURING PLANT OF IMPENDING LAYOFFS AFFECTING 500+ EMPLOYEES.
ALREADY FACED WITH PAYING MILLIONS TO CUSTOMERS FOR FAILING TO DELIVER THEIR LOCOMOTIVE PRODUCTS ACCORDING TO CONTRACTUAL TERMS, GE TRANSPORTATION IN WHAT APPEARS TO BE A STUPEFYING MOVE APPEARS READY TO SHUTTER THE ERIE LOCOMOTIVE PLANT. HOW THE EXECUTIVES AT GE TRANSPORTATION HEADQUARTERS IN CHICAGO CAN QUANTIFY THIS AS MAKING ANY BUSINESS SENSE, MAKES NO SENSE WHAT SO EVER. WHILE THE GE STOCK HAS REMAINED IN THE DOLDRUMS FOR THE PAST 4 YEARS IT RECENTLY HAS HAD A NICE BOUNCE UP. HELL, EVEN THE GE TRANSPORTATION DIVISION OF THE CONGLOMERATE REPORTED AN 11% JUMP IN PROFITS TO 379 MILLION FOR THE 3RD QUARTER. HOWEVER, THE REAL STORY ABOUT THE TRANSPORTATION DIVISION IS NOT AS ROSY AS THEY MAKE IT OUT TO BE. IN FACT, THE UNIT IS IN DEEP CRISIS. THE LEADERSHIP HAS BEEN SHUFFLED MORE TIMES THAN A BLACKJACK DEALERS DECK AND THE WORKERS GO TO WORK EVERY DAY FACING UNCERTAINTY.
PREPARING TO SHUT DOWN THE ERIE PLANT BEGAN OVER A DECADE AGO WITH PLANS BEING DRAWN UP TO BUILD THE NEW PLANT IN A RIGHT TO WORK AND BUSINESS FRIENDLY STATE. TEXAS FIT THE BILL AND FORT WORTH WAS SELECTED AS THE SITE FOR THE NEW PLANT.
WORKERS HAVE BEEN HIRED AND LOCOMOTIVES ARE BEING ASSEMBLED. HOWEVER, THE WORKERS MAKE ABOUT ONE THIRD OF THEIR UNION COUNTERPARTS IN PENNSYLVANIA. THIS DOES NOT HOWEVER, PRECLUDE THEM FROM FORMING AND JOINING A UNION, IT IS JUST A MORE DIFFICULT TASK TO ACCOMPLISH IN AN ANTI-WORKER STATE LIKE TEXAS.
THE PLANT IN ERIE IS OVER 100 YEARS OLD. AT ONE TIME, OVER 14,000 WORKERS WERE EMPLOYED THERE. THE REMAINING WORKERS ARE AMONG THE MOST PRODUCTIVE IN THE ENTIRE UNITED STATES AND CONSISTENTLY GENERATE BILLIONS IN PROFITS FOR GE YEAR IN AND YEAR OUT.
THE WHOLE IDEA OF SHUTTERING THE PLANT MAY HAVE TO TO DO WITH THE ECO-NIGHTMARE ON THE PROPERTY WHERE THE PLANT SITS. OVER 4 GENERATIONS OF WORKERS, PRODUCTS AND HIGHLY TOXIC MATERIALS HAVE BEEN USED IN THE PRODUCTION OF THEIR PRODUCTS.MANY OF THE TOXINS HAVE BEEN BURIED ON SITE WITH SCANT PAPERWORK DOCUMENTING THE EXACT NATURE OF WHAT IN EXACTLY ON THE SITE, WHERE IT IS, WHAT IT IS AND IN WHAT AMOUNTS.
SO BY SHUTTING DOWN THE PLANT, MAKING IT "OFF LIMITS" AND PAYING THE PROPERTY TAXES ON IT IN PERPETUITY, WOULD BE A CHEAPER ALTERNATIVE THAN TO ENVIRONMENTALLY REMEDIATE THE SITE WHICH COULD COST THE EQUIVALENT OF 7-10 YEARS WORTH OF PROFITS! GE WOULD RATHER TOSS IT INTO THE LAPS OF THE EPA!
HERE'S WHERE THIS STORY GETS EVEN MORE INTERESTING, THEIR SALES PEOPLE ARE OUT IN THE FIELD LOOKING TO SIGN MULTI-BILLION DOLLAR CONTRACTS TO BUILD EVEN MORE TRAIN ENGINES WHEN THEY ARE ALREADY UNDER CAPACITY!
WELL, THAT'S THE STORY AS I KNOW IT. I'M NO STOCK EXPERT, BUT I WOULD BE DUMPING MY GE STOCK RIGHT NOW. HELL, IF THIS IS THE WAY GE RUNS IT'S TRANSPORTATION UNIT AND THEN THEY LIE IN YOUR FACE AND TELL YOU IT'S ALL ROSES AND RAINBOWS WHEN IT AIN'T IT'S TIME TO DUMP THAT CRAPAROO STOCK AND PUT YOUR MONEY INTO SOMETHING ELSE LIKE..., WELL NOT GE.
IT'S SAD REALLY. CLOSING DOWN A 100 YEAR OLD PLANT THAT SERVED AND CONTINUES TO SERVE THE COMPANY SO WELL. AND WHAT ABOUT THE 4,500 MEN AND WOMEN EMPLOYED THERE GOING TO DO, GET JOBS DO WHAT? WORK AS JANITORS OR WAITRESSES AND NOT EVEN MAKE $9 AN HOUR. THIS IS AN OUTRAGE! OH SURE, THEY ARE CREATING JOBS IN TEXAS. BUT, WHAT KINDS OF JOBS ARE THOSE? SCAB JOBS STOLEN FROM THEIR AMERICAN BROTHERS IN PENNSYLVANIA AND TRANSFERRED DOWN TO JOB HUNGRY TEXAS. WHO CARES IF THE SAME JOB PAYS ONE THIRD OF WHAT IT DID UP NORTH. WELL, THAT'S THE WAY IT IS IN THE NEW ECONOMY. FIRST WEWENT FROM REAGANOMICS TO BUSHONOMICS, TO CLINTOMICS TO OBAMANOMICS..., EVENTUALLY THE ECONOMY WILL FAIL AND THESE ECONOMIC "WIZARDZ" WILL END UP LOCKED UP IN A FEDERAL PEN SOMEWHERE WHERE THE BELONG.
SELL THAT GE STOCK UNLESS YOU WANT TO RIDE IT TO THE BOTTOM.
THAT'S THE LATEST, FROM THE GREATEST BLOG OUT THERE...,
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FOR TODAY
WARRIOR
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