Posted on 10/27/2011 1:52:43 PM PDT by navysealdad
Sources tell 40/29 News that Whirlpool will be closing its Fort Smith plant sometime in mid-2012. The factory employed 4,600 in 2006. The company said that all Fort Smith production will shift to existing plants in the U.S. and Mexico "to leverage the resources and excess capacity at those facilities."
(Excerpt) Read more at 4029tv.com ...
Does GE own Whirlpool? I bought a pair of Neptunes from them and suffered for five years of hell. I swore them off in perpetuity.
I kind of wanted to buy another Whirlpool appliance, just to be buying American, but if they’re taking production to Mexico then the deal’s off. Oh, and the last Whirlpool dishwasher I had crapped out just a few days after the warranty ended. I had to wonder if there’s a timer hidden in the bowels of these things. They make the parts so expensive that it’s hardly even worth fixing it yourself, too.
Sorry, that was Maytag I suppose. Whirlpool bought maytag.
This is a big chunk of the Ft. Smith workers. Tough to get hit like this.
Good thing we have jobs czars and sound fiscal policies in place, otherwise they would have closed much earlier.
4,600 more jobs created or saved.
“Whirlpool Circles the Drain” - now *that* would’ve been a snappy headline.
What, there weren’t any unions to stop this move? Americans have priced themselves out of the labor market. Looks like some more unemployed waiting for shovel jobs at union wages.
The Whirlpool Corporation, based in Benton Harbor, Mich., makes Whirlpool, KitchenAid, and Gladiator products. The company has gobbled up Admiral, Amana, Jenn-Air, Magic Chef, and Maytag and all of these Whirlpool brands account for about 27.3 percent of major appliance sales in the U.S., followed by General Electric brands—GE and Hotpoint—(25.1percent), and the Sears Kenmore (16.7 percent).
Whirlpool makes appliances for Ikea, Sears Kenmore, and side-by-side built-in refrigerators for Thermador.
GE appliances are crap.
“Supported” is the new term; rymes with “Exported”
Whirlpool is reaping the bad reputation that their washers have built up. PARTICULARLY the Whirlpool owned Maytag Neptune series.
My daughter bought one of those 4 1/2 years ago, had nothing but troubles with it, spent a lot more money after the warranty ran out, and just last week scrapped it after the motor burned up. If you search on “Maytag Neptune problems” you get a massive amount of hits.
Meanwhile our 15 yr old “Maytag” Maytag continues to run without so much as a belt replacement.
Whirlpool was my hometown’s major employer from the time Whirlpool evolved from the Servel Refrigerator Company post WWII until the union’s activities caused the management to move HQ and 75% of their manufacturing capabilities to Ft. Smith back in the early to mid-seventies. That decision devastated Evansville, Indiana and the Jimmah Carter era made it worse. The unemployment in Evansville at one time was over 27%.
Now this....UNIONS SUCK. Time the unions go the way of the buggy whip. Afterall; all the governments, state, local and Fed’s have their own labor regulations and rules that make paying a union for representation a redundancy and very stupid.
At least they;re not ging to China.
At least they;re not ging to China.
For anyone delighting in these people losing their jobs...Fort Smith is an incredibly conservative city (we just moved from there at the end of May). I know of people who work there and it’s been real up and down for a long time. We couldn’t sell our house there and had to rent it out in August. Stuff like this isn’t going to help when we put it back on the market next year.
I don't think anyone's delighting in the loss of these jobs. Some have had bad experiences with the company's product and some are bitter at union power. But no one is delighted.
get yourself a Speed Queen. Tough as nails and I love my set. Made in the USA.
3-year warranty on parts and labor for the entire washing machine
5-year limited warranty on the motor
5-year limited warranty on the cabinet
10-year limited warranty on the transmission
A lifetime warranty on the outer drain tub and the stainless steel wash basket
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