Goodyear Gets Buyout Deal in Akron

USW workers at Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.’s race tyre plant in Akron have accepted a buyout scheme. The company has offered buyouts to 120 workers at the plant, about 30 per cent of total employment there, citing reduced demand due to cutbacks made in various race series. USW Local 2, which covers some 440 employees in Akron, passed the offer “overwhelmingly,” according to reports. The deal also preserves some 250 jobs through 2012 at Goodyear’s tech center in the city.

However, the agreement allows Goodyear to move rubber mixing from Akron to its Dunlop plant in Buffalo within the next two years. The one-time buyout offer covers the first 120 employees who elect to take it, and gives $2,000 per year of service up to a maximum of $40,000. If fewer than 120 employees take the offer, Goodyear will have the right to layoff workers to reach that level. (Tire Review/Akron)