Events Calendar
In This Section
Most Read Stories
Man found dead in North Akron home is identified
NFL star Chris Spielman's wife loses cancer battle
Dad accused of forcing son into field, killing him
Poor machine maintenance blamed for fire at Akron business
Coventry man killed in crash at I-77 ramp
College student mistaken for deer, shot to death
Man allegedly paid teens to spit in his face
Indians add 7 players to 40-man roster
Body with gunshot wounds found in Canton Township creek
Blogs:
Pets:
Sick Pets Get High-tech Health Care
The Heldenfiles:
Friday Night Notebook
Patrick McManamon:
The proposed new LeBron mural doesn't do it for me
Akron Zips:
Two blowouts, one night
Tribe Matters:
Seven players added to Tribe’s 40-man roster
Cleveland Browns:
Hey, somebody's gotta stick up for the Browns
Kent State Sports:
Singletary update
Cleveland Cavaliers:
Gameblog: Cavs at Indiana Pacers – Here’s to LBJ and Free Throws
Buckeye Blogging:
OSU – Michigan college football rivals meet in Baghdad
Varsity Letters:
Bowling season starts today
All Da King's Men:
Headed For Disaster
Blog of Mass Destruction:
Muslim McCarthyism & Death Prayers
Akron Law Café:
Federal Judge Declares DOMA Unconstitutional
See Jane Style:
Vintage Chic
Car Chase:
TIME TO GET YOUR COLLECTOR CARS WINTERIZED
Let's Talk Real Estate:
Silverdome Potentially SOLD!
Ohio Travels with Betty:
Norma asks if Barkitecture is still at Stan Hywet.
Sound Check:
Steely Dan Plays "The Royal Scam" at E.J. Thomas Hall
HRLite House:
Colloquium at University of Akron
Akron Gamer:
Nintendo's Mario endures even as games come and go
By Marilyn Miller
Beacon Journal staff writer
POSTED: 09:28 p.m. EDT, Oct 28, 2009
The trucking industry continues to be hit hard by the economy.
The Hendrickson International Trailer Suspension Systems said Wednesday it will shut down its Canton plant by the end of the year, eliminating 189 jobs.
Company officials blame the closing on a downturn in business and the need to consolidate operations.
''The industry experts are telling us that the industry will not be coming back anytime soon in the foreseeable future. There will be at least a two- to three-year recovery,'' said David Decker, human resources director. ''It's been difficult.''
Hendrickson, a Boler Group company, is at 2070 Industrial Place SE. The plant, which opened in 1987, supplies commercial truck and tractor suspensions.
The announcement came this week in an official notice to employees. The company also filed the information as part of the Worker Adjustment Retraining Notification Act (WARN), which requires a 60-day notice for layoffs.
''The company has been scaling back for a while now. There have been layoffs in the past year,'' said Greg Van Dress of Teamsters Local 92, which represents workers at Hendrickson. ''We have about 140 union workers who already have call-back rights. We only have about 40 Teamsters working at the plant now.''
His members operate paint and welding robots, presses and other equipment at the plant. The Boler Group has four other plants for the trailer division in the United States: in Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee and South Dakota. Only the Canton plant is unionized.
Decker said the manufacturing work will be farmed out to the other plants.
Hendrickson laid off about 70 employees in June, 21 in September 2008 and about 70 at the end of October 2008.
Van Dress said the company and union negotiated a severance package for the Teamsters.
The outlook appeared more hopeful for the company in 2004, when the city and state helped Hendrickson expand and purchase equipment.
Canton City Council gave the company a 75 percent, 10-year tax abatement on the expansion and new equipment, and Ohio gave a 55 percent, seven-year tax credit requiring Hendrickson to maintain operations in Canton for 14 years.
Decker said the headquarters for the Hendrickson Trailer Suspensions division will remain in Canton, as well as its research and development operation. Administrative, finance and sales offices will also remain.
Marilyn Miller can be reached at 330-996-3098 or mmiller@thebeaconjournal.com.
The trucking industry continues to be hit hard by the economy.
The Hendrickson International Trailer Suspension Systems said Wednesday it will shut down its Canton plant by the end of the year, eliminating 189 jobs.
Company officials blame the closing on a downturn in business and the need to consolidate operations.
''The industry experts are telling us that the industry will not be coming back anytime soon in the foreseeable future. There will be at least a two- to three-year recovery,'' said David Decker, human resources director. ''It's been difficult.''
Hendrickson, a Boler Group company, is at 2070 Industrial Place SE. The plant, which opened in 1987, supplies commercial truck and tractor suspensions.
The announcement came this week in an official notice to employees. The company also filed the information as part of the Worker Adjustment Retraining Notification Act (WARN), which requires a 60-day notice for layoffs.
''The company has been scaling back for a while now. There have been layoffs in the past year,'' said Greg Van Dress of Teamsters Local 92, which represents workers at Hendrickson. ''We have about 140 union workers who already have call-back rights. We only have about 40 Teamsters working at the plant now.''
His members operate paint and welding robots, presses and other equipment at the plant. The Boler Group has four other plants for the trailer division in the United States: in Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee and South Dakota. Only the Canton plant is unionized.
Decker said the manufacturing work will be farmed out to the other plants.
Hendrickson laid off about 70 employees in June, 21 in September 2008 and about 70 at the end of October 2008.
Van Dress said the company and union negotiated a severance package for the Teamsters.
The outlook appeared more hopeful for the company in 2004, when the city and state helped Hendrickson expand and purchase equipment.
Canton City Council gave the company a 75 percent, 10-year tax abatement on the expansion and new equipment, and Ohio gave a 55 percent, seven-year tax credit requiring Hendrickson to maintain operations in Canton for 14 years.
Decker said the headquarters for the Hendrickson Trailer Suspensions division will remain in Canton, as well as its research and development operation. Administrative, finance and sales offices will also remain.
Marilyn Miller can be reached at 330-996-3098 or mmiller@thebeaconjournal.com.
Comments
Click here to post your comments
somewhere near you, OH
Posted 12:48 AM, 10/29/2009
Common sense 1
Union 0
