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.
When Rendell was campaigning for his first term as Governor in Philly,the union rent a mob actually cheered when he said he would raise taxes on the very companies they worked for! Nothing will bring jobs to the area like unions and high taxes.
How labor-intensive to you think candy manufacturing actually is?
I didn't say a word about how labor intensive this may or may not be.
That doesn't even matter any more.
And when they move these plants to other countries where they have fewer controls, worse hygiene.....watch the foodborne illness rates climb. however, FDA actually counts on the fact that it is very hard to spot (let alone prove cause and effect) illnesses from foods until they are severe because most folks don’t go to the dr for the run of the mill ones.
i once heard a nationally famous economist say that what many industry heads lack is a long term view of the economy...everything is always “here and now” because of their profit cycles....
just exactly how long do these rich corporate heads think americans can continue to buy their products if they don’t work? at some point we are going to reach critical mass.
Oh yes it does, grasshopper. If you have the choice of running a modernized candy-making line with three employees in a location where sugar is one-third the price, you will choose it over running a modernized candy-making line with thirteen employees (due to union rules) where sugar costs three times as much. Think about it. Wages play a role, but not to the degree people think.
The law does not specifically require that the country of origin statement be placed on the principal display panel, but requires that it be conspicuous. If a domestic firm's name and address is declared as the firm responsible for distributing the product, then the country of origin statement must appear in close proximity to the name and address and be at least comparable in size of lettering. (U.S. Department of Treasury regulation)
And this from the USDA:
On May 13, 2002, President Bush signed into law the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002, more commonly known as the 2002 Farm Bill. One of its many initiatives requires country of origin labeling for beef, lamb, pork, fish, perishable agricultural commodities and peanuts. On January 27, 2004, President Bush signed Public Law 108-199 which delays the implementation of mandatory COOL for all covered commodities except wild and farm-raised fish and shellfish until September 30, 2006. On November 10, 2005, President Bush signed Public Law 109-97, which delays the implementation for all covered commodities except wild and farm-raised and shellfish until September 30, 2008. As described in the legislation, program implementation is the responsibility of USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service.
Thank goodness they have the free-traitors to look out for them.
Hopefully before there is nothing left. Any chance we can outsource our government, cut back on some overhead.
Go to the Dollar Store or a Cracker Barrel and get some good Goo Goos made in Nashville, Tennessee.
I can definitely agree with you on Cracker Barrel, but I would NEVER buy food from a Dollar Store. Can you imagine how long that stuff has been around. Please don’t buy food from those places. That is what grocery stores are for.
Oh yes it does, grasshopper.
Oh no, it doesn't junior.
You're right about that. I would hope that after the pet food scare people would pay more attention to what they buy and eat.
About what they will be paying the Chinese *union* workers when they move there...
Fact or Opinion? I assume, without looking (but I will take time to track it down), that it's opinion. I doubt very seriously that Hershey has not turned a profit. Even in spite of the Union wages and benefits. Did they not recently buy out Mars candies? I guess they did this with those opined non-profits? More likely, Hershey suffers from the same deadly sin as most other un-American corporations, GREED! Don't forget to thank a FRee to be Traitor. Blackbird.
Ooooh? More food from the clean Chicoms? No thanx.
I don’t think they pay them that much.
There's alwasy the military. They ain't outsourcing the dying.
I believe it never made it out of committee.
Oh yes it does, gramps. What an insightful exchange we’re having. Thanks for contributing.
Uh, and why are they moving "more stuff to China"?
Look for the union label
if you want to
be out of
a job.
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