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Local Hobbs plant to close at cost of 120 jobs
A Springfield manufacturer credited in the 1930s with producing the first electric clock for automobiles could be on its way to Mexico, at a cost of 120 local jobs.Employees at the Honeywell Hobbs plant at 11th and Ash streets were notified Tuesday of plans to move the operations to Juarez, Mexico. Details and the timing of the closure are still subject to negotiations with the union representing production workers, said Mark Hamel, spokesman for the parent company, Honeywell International Corp. The facility, founded by John W. Hobbs in 1938, is one of the oldest manufacturing plants in Springfield. "It is tough," Hamel said. "It is not a step any company likes to take, but at the end of the day, we need to make sure we can compete in a global market." The Springfield plant produces controls, switches, lighting products, battery indicators and meters for the transportation industry. Hamel said he did not have a breakdown of union and management employees, but most of the workers at the Springfield plant are in production. The phase-out would depend on negotiations with the United Auto Workers on issues such as severance pay and benefits. "We are confident we can reach agreement with them. We are doing this within our collective bargaining agreement," he said. "I really wouldn't hazard a guess (on a closing date), as it depends on each individual situation," he added. The company has announced the same proposal for a plant at Spring Valley, 60 miles north of Peoria, where Honeywell has about 60 employees. Springfield resident Sherry Clark said she and her husband, Michael, were among workers caught in an initial round of layoffs early this year. Clark said she wasn't surprised to learn of the closing plans. 'It was the first time I've ever been laid off from a job. They've been there a long time. My grandmother worked there as an operator," said Clark, who worked at the plant for about three years. Posted by: Fred 2009-10-29 |
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