PALMYRA - Another 17 pink slips were handed out this week at Garlock
Sealing Technologies, part of what company officials said is their strategy
to get through the economic downturn.
“As we continue to look at business needs and economic reality, this was something the company had to do,” said company spokesman Jim Malvaso Tuesday morning.
Malvaso said in order for the Division Street company to remain competitive in the global marketplace, it was necessary to lay off 7 percent of its 235 salaried workers at the Palmyra plant.
This round of layoffs comes on the heels of 43 cuts - 10 percent of the hourly workers - made two weeks ago.
In January, the more than 400 hourly employees - members of the International Union of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Union - nearly went on strike before signing a three-year contract that guaranteed a 2 percent raise for the next two years and a 3 percent raise in the third year. The negotiations, company officials said, had no bearing on the decision to reduce the number of hourly workers.
Malvaso said when deciding how to cut the salaried positions, the company first looked at not filling spots left vacant by retirements.
“We then looked at the needs of the business and determined from there who was selected,” he added.
Although he would not go into detail, Malvaso said those let go this week would be getting some severance pay.
Future cuts, he indicated, will depend on company needs and the economy.
“Over time, we will assess the workforce and make decisions to remain competitive,” he said. “If business picks up, and we are hopeful it will, we will assess our needs and decide if we need to rehire again.”
In addition to the workforce reduction, one area will shut down for a week in April, and production at the Gylon building was changed from a 24/7 operation to five days of eight-hour shift.
The company is undergoing a more than $30 million expansion project - financed by a 20-year payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT) agreement that began in 2005 - in an effort to stay in the state.
The project includes the construction of new buildings while demolishing and renovating others that were about 100 years old.
A condition of the PILOT was the company staying in Palmyra and retaining at least 450 jobs, a number Malvaso confirmed they were not in danger of getting close to. Before the cuts, Garlock employed approximately 600 people.
The decision to cut jobs was a local one, Malvaso said, and not mandated by the corporate office at EnPro Industries in Charlotte, N.C.
“As we continue to look at business needs and economic reality, this was something the company had to do,” said company spokesman Jim Malvaso Tuesday morning.
Malvaso said in order for the Division Street company to remain competitive in the global marketplace, it was necessary to lay off 7 percent of its 235 salaried workers at the Palmyra plant.
This round of layoffs comes on the heels of 43 cuts - 10 percent of the hourly workers - made two weeks ago.
In January, the more than 400 hourly employees - members of the International Union of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Union - nearly went on strike before signing a three-year contract that guaranteed a 2 percent raise for the next two years and a 3 percent raise in the third year. The negotiations, company officials said, had no bearing on the decision to reduce the number of hourly workers.
Malvaso said when deciding how to cut the salaried positions, the company first looked at not filling spots left vacant by retirements.
“We then looked at the needs of the business and determined from there who was selected,” he added.
Although he would not go into detail, Malvaso said those let go this week would be getting some severance pay.
Future cuts, he indicated, will depend on company needs and the economy.
“Over time, we will assess the workforce and make decisions to remain competitive,” he said. “If business picks up, and we are hopeful it will, we will assess our needs and decide if we need to rehire again.”
In addition to the workforce reduction, one area will shut down for a week in April, and production at the Gylon building was changed from a 24/7 operation to five days of eight-hour shift.
The company is undergoing a more than $30 million expansion project - financed by a 20-year payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT) agreement that began in 2005 - in an effort to stay in the state.
The project includes the construction of new buildings while demolishing and renovating others that were about 100 years old.
A condition of the PILOT was the company staying in Palmyra and retaining at least 450 jobs, a number Malvaso confirmed they were not in danger of getting close to. Before the cuts, Garlock employed approximately 600 people.
The decision to cut jobs was a local one, Malvaso said, and not mandated by the corporate office at EnPro Industries in Charlotte, N.C.
