By Kirk Johannesen, The Republic
johannesen@therepublic.com
Columbus Components Group will lay off 123 employees today, leaving 138, according to a union representative.
Jerry Wagner, business manager for International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1424, said the layoffs involve union and non-union employees.
Workers will leave the plant when they are notified by company management about being laid off, Wagner said.
CCG stamps parts for auto companies, including Cummins Inc.
In a March letter to Mayor Fred Armstrong and employees, the company wrote that because of decreased sales due to the slumping economy and automotive industry, it would begin layoffs of about 135 employees today, and could close the plant in the future.
"Right now they need to hold (a certain) amount of people to get jobs done," Wagner said.
He said he expects more layoffs in the next few weeks. He is not telling employees the plant is definitely closing, but with less work in the plant he is telling employees to equate the layoffs with permanent cuts.
In March, when CCG announced its layoff plan, Wagner said bad management led to less work for employees.
CCG had abandoned profitable light-duty automotive work to focus almost exclusively on heavy-duty automotive work, a strategy with which the union does not agree, Wagner said.
Also, CCG has had machines removed from the plant, which has prevented work, Wagner said.
CCG management and Wagner negotiated which employees would be let go. The company gave him a list of those it wanted to lay off, and Wagner pointed out which ones could not be laid off because of seniority.
Wagner said he asked some of the older workers with seniority if they would volunteer for the layoff to give younger employees the chance to keep their jobs and because the remaining work is dirty, manual labor that involves lifting heavy parts. Twenty-six older workers volunteered.
About 10 to 12 maintenance and tool workers will lose about $5 per hour in pay because their duties are being reclassified to a lower level, Wagner said.