"What we need is a Five-Year plan for candy manufacturing.
I will appoint a Planning Committee at the earliest opportunity,
and name it GOSPLAN.
How dare these private corporations allocate their resources
without my input!"
Posted on 04/24/2007 8:21:11 AM PDT by Wolfie
Hershey to Close Reading, Pa., Plant
The Hershey Co., the nation's leading candy maker, said Monday that it will shut down a plant in Reading as part of a wider move to cut labor and materials costs.
The closing, which will affect about 260 unionized employees, is the company's second plant-closing announcement in a little over two months.
"Our network operates at less than half of capacity (over seven days) and we must make significant changes to remain competitive," Hershey (nyse: HSY - news - people ) spokesman Kirk Saville said.
Saville said the company would work out severance agreements with the workers and close the plant in 2008. Hershey is looking to shift more manufacturing to India, China, Mexico and contractors in the United States, and has already announced it will cut up to 900 of the 3,000 workers from three plants in its hometown.
Hershey originally purchased the Reading plant from the Dietrich Corp. in 1987 and brought aboard the Luden's cough drop brand and the Fifth Avenue chocolate bar.
The plant also makes York Peppermint Patties, Reese's crispy crunch bars and Jolly Ranchers. The plant is about 40 miles east of the company headquarters in the town named for the chocolate magnate, Milton S. Hershey.
Overinflated CEO wages: Good. Overinflated worker wages: Bad. Go figure.
"If it can be outsourced it will be, if they can bring in low wage labor to replace you they will."
So, are you going to deny this?
They can’t be trusted with Dog food, why chocolate.
Hershey has a plant up the road from here in Oakdale (CA) where they make Hershey Kisses and Reeses Peanut Butter Cups.
They employ 800 workers presently and all seem to be concerned about whether this plant will close or not.
The Modesto Bee (McClatchey) is seeking comments from past and current employees regarding possible closure of the local candy plant.
Prior to 9-11, Hershey offered tours of the plant. Fascinating to watch the process involved in the making of Hershey Kisses. The tours were discontinued and haven’t re-started.
I refer you to my comment #65.
Personally, I think the effect of overseas manufacturing would be mitigated by the fact that transportation is so expensive.
Look for the china label if you wanna work at walmart
Look for the china label if it with your job you wanna part
Look for the china label to increase the national debt
Cause with the china label free traitors will your job bet.
Right cause Bill clinton did more or less tradeing with china than previous administrations? Hell Clinton moved technologies into a different sphere just so we could off load them to china.
So, are you going to deny this?
I refer you to my comment #65.
And I am speaking of this *new* economy in general, which includes Hershey.
Well?
.....I’m sick of all these jobs moving out of the country...
It was a Ratland union plant whose workers were determined not to compete.
I think you just put your finger on it.
In Hershey's case, these are existing plants, so what I'm saying may not apply. But for new plants, the regulatory climate in the states works against building any kind of facility in the US. Why would you waste years trying to get an LNG permitted in the US, when you could just build it in Mexico and get on with it? Why would you try to build any kind of heavy smoke-stack factory in the US, where no one wants you (aside from working people), wasting years of your productive life trying to get permission, when there are other countries that want your investment dollars?
In some cases companies have worked years to get permission, finally getting it, then have yet another hurdle thrown up. Finally they just go elsewhere.
I live in California. Why anyone would build anything in California is beyond me. Unions have nothing to do with it. If you want to build a factory, go to Nevada, go to Mexico, go to China, but do not waste your time trying to build it here. Life is short. Don't waste it.
Exactly right. This is not complicated.
Lets get real here. Do you think those wages in Nevada can compete with Mexico and China's wages?
Uh huh.
Until the introduction of the Income Tax most of the federal revenue was collected via tariffs on imported goods and materials. We have since virtually eliminated tariffs as a source of federal revenue and we are now reaping the rewards.
I don't think a service economy can last too long without a manufacturing base. And since 90% of the crap we are importing is throw away rather than serviceable goods, our service economy may be headed for a collapse.
To think that Hershey's is moving out of the United States is worrisome. Certainly the lay off of 260 employees into a market with a very low unemployment is not going to have any immediate effect, but the long term effect of this kind of outsourcing is not going to be a pretty sight.
It is time we got out of the global market and started becoming a sovereign nation once again. Hershey's is no longer an American Company and they have no loyalty to America.
Quite frankly $12.50 to $22,50 per hour is not all that much and quite frankly Hershey Chocolate is not all that expensive and it tends to be cheaper than the imported chocolates anyway. I see no reason for this move other than than the fact that the company has no loyalty to the United States and is more than happy to pay slave wages in foreign countries in order to boost its profits. That is something that they are clearly entitled to do, however if we do not stop this hemorrhaging of jobs out of the country, our country could be in for trouble ahead.
I think we, as a nation, should do all we can to level the playing field with foreign countries. Unless those countries have relatively equal labor conditions, wages, workers compensation laws and mandatory regulations to those which our manufacturers in America are subject to, then the US Government should impose tariffs on all their goods entering into this country. It is a small price to pay to ensure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity. This is not protectionism, it is preservationism.
/rant
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