It's official: Anchor Hocking files WARN notice confirming shutdown of Charleroi glass factory

By Madaleine Rubin / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Anchor Hocking filed a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) notice with the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry Tuesday to notify the state that it is closing its Corelle Brands glass factory in Washington County.

The permanent shutdown will impact 270 employees. A notice also was sent to some factory management employees on Oct. 11, according to a document obtained by the Post-Gazette.

Anchor Hocking, an Ohio-based glass manufacturing company, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The company internally announced on Sept. 5 its plans to close the 132-year old factory in Charleroi and move all services to another plant in Lancaster, Ohio. The factory — a linchpin of the community and economy in Charleroi, a small borough of about 4,000 — is expected to close completely by Feb. 28, the notice said.

The first round of layoffs will occur on Dec. 9, impacting 179 employees. Employees are expected to be let go in four subsequent waves, ending on Feb. 17.

According to the notice, “customer demands” could require some employees to remain at the factory beyond that date.

The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act seeks to ensure that employees receive advance notice of qualified plant closings and mass layoffs. The WARN Act requires employers to provide notice 60 days in advance of such closures or layoffs.

The plant’s employees are represented by the United Steelworkers Local 53-G union. Those workers will have bumping rights, the notice said. Factory management not represented by the union who are impacted by layoffs will not have bumping rights, according to the notice.

United Steelworkers Local 53-G Vice President Daniele Byrne said employees were initially told that 150 jobs will be available at the Lancaster plant, about 170 miles away. Tuesday’s WARN notice confirms that there will be open positions in Lancaster, but does not specify the number of jobs available. Union leaders plan to visit the Lancaster plant this week, Ms. Byrne said.

Effects bargaining between the union and company started on Sept. 23 and is ongoing.

In the interim, about 40 factory employees have quit their jobs or been laid off since the company initially announced the closure, according to Ms. Byrne.

Departures have left the Charleroi plant understaffed — but producing more than it has in months, union leaders said. Factory employees said they were asked in late September to restart a closed-down production line in order to increase output.

Since the factory’s closure was announced, local officials have tried to contact Anchor Hocking. The company has not responded, Charleroi Borough Council members said.

“We would welcome negotiation of any kind with them,” Charleroi Borough Council President Kristin Hopkins-Calcek said.

Meanwhile, Charleroi is preparing for the factory’s closure.

Mon Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Leanna Spada said the “whole community is jumping into action.”

The borough’s CareerLink location — a workforce development center — is preparing to assist employees who are laid off, while local businesses are looking to fill positions, Ms. Spada said.

The Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry’s Rapid Response team is also working with the union to support employees.

A prayer and unity vigil for factory retirees, employees and their families will be held on Nov. 3 near the plant.

“I have the utmost respect for their skill, their passion for it [and] their love of it,” Ms. Hopkins-Calcek said of factory employees.

“That’s why we’re fighting so hard.”