Bridgestone/Firestone Plant in Venezuela Reportedly Taken Over

(Akron/Tire Review) Unconfirmed news reports out of Venezuela indicate that operations at Bridgestone/Firestone’s tyre plant in Valencia have been suspended since last Friday due to a disturbance that apparently involve trade unions seeking to represent workers at the plant.

El Universal.com reported that “a group of people stormed into the facilities arbitrarily and illegally.” Company officials, according to the report, are “certain that the relevant institutions will find a prompt solution to the problem.”

It is not clearly understood exactly what occurred, only that the plant has been shut down for now. Company officials reportedly said that the issue “will be solved with the intervention of the competent authorities to restore soon normal conditions and labor peace.”

However, the El Universal.com report said that three people were injured Monday, including one who was shot, and eight people were detained as a result of riots led by individuals opposed to the “manufacture trade union.”