Whirlpool proceeds with job cuts previously announced

This is one promise a corporation could have been forgiven for breaking.

In December 2009, officials with Benton Harbor, Mich.-based Whirlpool Corp. said the more than 400 jobs created with a second shift of refrigerator production would likely end at the end of summer 2010.

And so they will.

"Plant management has confirmed that they anticipate some layoffs to take place in October and November,” noted an Aug. 18 e-mail comment from Whirlpool spokeswoman Jill Saletta. “The October layoffs are due to the end of production of counter-depth refrigerators at the plant, which we announced to employees at the end of 2009. November layoffs are anticipated due to softening of demand, which is typical at this time of year."

It’s unclear how many jobs will be cut when production is reduced on the 25-cubic-foot side-by-side refrigerator. Sources inside the plant say the company plans a small production increase with its built-in refrigerator model and trash compactor production is expected to stay the same.

And according to a union bulletin, production of counter-depth refrigerators will end Oct. 11 and second-shift production of 25- and 27-cubic-foot models will “tentatively” end Nov. 29

The bulletin advised: “However, because of a softening in the economy and projected lower volumes that have developed since previous communications, Line 3 rates will also be reduced.”

The sources also say the company is reviewing the possibility of moving some production of the 22- and 24-cubic-foot refrigerators from a plant in Mexico back to Fort Smith. That review was part of the reason, one source said, behind a July 16 meeting at Whirlpool’s Fort Smith plant that included U.S. Sen. Blanche Lincoln, D-Ark., Becky Thompson, assistant director of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission, and Whirlpool CEO Jeff Fettig.

Saletta and Kenny Thompson, Whirlpool division vice president, said at the time the visit was just to build relationships and lobby for support of federal legislation to extend tax credits for energy-efficient appliance sales and production. Thompson, with the AEDC, said she and other AEDC personnel were there to show the state’s support for existing industry.

Saletta said Wednesday the company does not comment on speculation.

The future of Whirlpool’s Fort Smith refrigerator-production plant has been a cause for concern following the November 2003 announcement by Whirlpool of a global reorganization plan. The news since November 2003 has been troubling, with Whirlpool announcing numerous production cuts and layoffs that has seen employment in Fort Smith drop from about 4,600 in early 2006 to around 2,000 today.

Reduction of Whirlpool jobs likely will hit in the midst of major cuts at another large manufacturer operating in Fort Smith.

The Trane manufacturing plant in Fort Smith will see 123 jobs cuts no later than Aug. 2, according to a letter sent June 23 from Trane officials to the city of Fort Smith. Another 76 layoffs will hit by September, with 6 layoffs planned in December, according to the note from Becky Steph, a human resources leader for Ingersoll Rand in Tyler, Texas.

“Based on the information currently available, the Company will permanently terminate approximately 123 employees at its Fort Smith facility on or about August 2, 2010. Additional layoffs are anticipated to occur in or about September, 2010 (approximately 76 employees), and in or about December, 2010 (approximately 6 employees),” according to the Trane statement received Wednesday by the city.