GE lays off 922

Joe Roberts came to Bloomington six years ago after General Electric closed down his place of employment, an appliance factory in Cincinnati. An unskilled worker who didn't have much choice, he took up GE's offer to relocate him and his family.\nAnd now he's looking at migrating again.\n"It's happened so many times," he said. "It just has a numbing effect."\nRoberts was one of the 922 GE employees to clock out of the Bloomington refrigerator factory for the final time Friday. The laid-off workers will receive severance pay equal to one week's wages for every year they have worked for GE.\nGE Appliances spokesman Terry Dunn, who described the severance package as generous, said the workers would also be allowed to keep their company-paid medical insurance for up to a year. And Dunn said they will be eligible for up to $4,000 in job training, as well as federal assistance for workers displaced by the North American Free Trade Agreement.\nRoberts -- and others who choose to pack their bags -- are eligible for preferential hiring at other GE plants.\nGE officials announced the cutbacks in September 1999, citing the increased production costs of complying with federal environmental regulations that go into effect this July. The Fortune 500 company put forward its plans to transfer 1,400 jobs to Celaya, Mexico, where labor is cheaper.\nThe Celaya factory will produce labor-intensive, high-end refrigerators, while the Bloomington plant will focus on a better-selling, high-volume model. Dunn said the line has been selling well even in a wintry marketplace. \n"The feedback on this product so far has been excellent," he said. "We believe we have a real winner."\nWhile it scaled back on its Bloomington workforce, GE invested $100 million in the Curry Pike factory on the west side of town to meet the strict energy-efficiency standards under the Congressional Clean Air Act.\n"All of the equipment in the plant is obsolete under the new energy standards," Dunn said. "And we're making a very serious investment to preserve the factory and the jobs."\nWith a sagging economy, GE ended up cutting 200 more jobs than the 1,400 it announced in 1999. In mid-December, it let go of 735 workers in the first round of cutbacks.\nMore than 300 workers were rehired to assist the factory with its production goals. Of those who lost their jobs, about 400 were called back or hired temporarily.\nWhile they received their pink slips two weeks ago, Friday didn't digest easily with everyone.\n"People are human -- they put their best faces on and deal with it," said Bob Lewis, a 25-year veteran of the plant. "But in their quiet moments, you could tell they were hurting."\nThe layoffs affected only those with the least seniority, who were hired as early as 1992. But Lewis hasn't been sleeping well.\n"A few years back, I though it was a joke when I heard people talking about jobs going to Mexico," he said. "I thought it was a pipe dream. But now I listen to all the rumors."\nIf the economy doesn't pick up, Lewis said he fears another round of layoffs as early as August.\n"I've been thinking of going back to school," he said. "Or maybe I'll just leave the area. I don't have concrete plans, but I see things happening around me."\nWhile he issued a warning about slowing appliance sales, Dunn said the company shouldn't consider any further layoffs until 2003, when federal regulations will phase out ozone-depleting HCFC-14b foam insulation. \nBut he believes the company will invest again in the Bloomington plant to secure its long-term future. With 1,600 workers, GE remains one of Monroe County's largest employers.\n"We're not talking about jobs," he said. "We're talking about people. And we want to do everything we can to show our commitment to our workforce"