OUTPOURING OF JOB INSECURITY : PLANT WORKERS PROTEST LAYOFFS.Byline: Deborah Adamson Daily News Staff Writer With chants of ``Victory!'' in Spanish, 250 Price Pfister Price Pfister is an American manufacturer of faucets and other plumbing products since 1915. It is known most by its odd name, and its advertisements which make note of its "pfaucet with a pfunny name". employees marched outside the faucet maker's plant Friday to protest the flight of their jobs to Mexicali, Mexico. The demonstration by the mostly Latino crowd made a noisy statement that the workers at California's largest faucet maker are not going to go away quietly. ``Today is the first day of the fight against Price Pfister and (its parent) Black & Decker,'' declared Scott Askey, an organizer from the International Teamsters Union Teamsters Union, U.S. labor union formed in 1903 by the amalgamation of the Team Drivers International Union and the Teamsters National Union. Its full name is the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Warehousemen, and Helpers of America (IBT). . He pledged to take the protest around the Valley, to community centers and politicians' offices. But Friday's protest wasn't heard in the corporate suites because Price Pfister's president wasn't in. Councilman Richard Alarcon called the company Tuesday to try to negotiate an incentive package to keep the jobs in Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. . He was told that the president was traveling and could not be reached until next week. Some workers feared that the union bravado is too little, too late to stop the layoffs that began six months ago. Melodie Barajas, a 37-year-old assembler who has been with the company for 10 years, is not optimistic that she'll get her job back. But she was part of the protest in hopes it would put pressure on management to give workers good severance pay Severance Pay Compensation that an employer gives to someone who is about to lose their job. Notes: Severance pay is not always paid to employees. It depends on the situation in which the employee is losing their job and whether legislation requires severance to be paid. and other benefits. ``What we're working for is justice,'' she said. Earlier this year, the company quietly began laying off assembly workers and moving jobs to its plant in Mexico. Price Pfister since has announced plans to cut 550 jobs out of the 1,300 at Pacoima by the end of the year, but recent estimates by government officials put the figure closer to 800. The firm has blamed its move on Proposition 65, which requires warnings on consumer products that may cause cancer or birth defects birth defects, abnormalities in physical or mental structure or function that are present at birth. They range from minor to seriously deforming or life-threatening. A major defect of some type occurs in approximately 3% of all births. . Industry experts say the firm is consolidating its assembly operations in Mexico to benefit from lower labor costs and looser environmental laws. ``The faucet market is very competitive,'' said Richard Church Richard Church may be
In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with. every possible way to cut costs.'' Price Pfister officials did not return calls for comment. The move to Mexico has been facilitated by the North American Free Trade Agreement North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), accord establishing a free-trade zone in North America; it was signed in 1992 by Canada, Mexico, and the United States and took effect on Jan. 1, 1994. . Since it was implemented in 1994, NAFTA NAFTA in full North American Free Trade Agreement Trade pact signed by Canada, the U.S., and Mexico in 1992, which took effect in 1994. Inspired by the success of the European Community in reducing trade barriers among its members, NAFTA created the world's has helped American companies take business across the border by eliminating tariffs and investment barriers with Canada and Mexico. While the unionized employees at the Pacoima plant earn $7 to $16 an hour plus benefits, the Teamsters' Askey claimed that workers in Mexicali make just $7 a day. Askey said the company is ``moving from California because they are being held to environmental standards in this state.'' Duane Peterson, chief of staff for state Sen. Tom Hayden Thomas Emmett "Tom" Hayden (born December 11, 1939) is an American social and political activist and politician, most famous for his involvement in the anti-war and civil rights movements of the 1960s. , who helped draft Proposition 65, assailed Price Pfister's move. ``It's just another run south and they're blaming somebody else. Their environmental record speaks for itself.'' In January, the faucet maker agreed to pay $2.4 million and remove lead from its products within four years to settle a Proposition 65 lawsuit brought against it and other manufacturers by the state and an environmental watchdog group. Lead can impair fetal development and cause brain damage in children. In 1987, Price Pfister was one of Los Angeles County's top 50 toxic-chemical polluters and was cited for illegally dumping toxic materials into the sewer system Noun 1. sewer system - facility consisting of a system of sewers for carrying off liquid and solid sewage sewage system, sewage works facility, installation - a building or place that provides a particular service or is used for a particular industry; "the . The company had used the ``sand-casting'' method of manufacturing in which lead was used to fill in pores to keep the valve from leaking. Its new method, called ``machining,'' uses much less lead, Church said. Founded in 1910 by Emil Price and William Pfister, the company originally made gasoline generators. It has changed ownership five times, with Black & Decker Corp. of Towson, Md., acquiring the company when it bought Emhart Corp. of Farmington, Conn., in 1989. Emhart purchased Price Pfister for $215 million in 1988 and Black & Decker bought Emhart for $2.8 billion. Price Pfister at a glance President: Ron Cooper Annual sales: $200 million Products: Faucets and other plumbing products U.S. workers: 1,300 Plants: Pacoima and Mexicali, Mexico History: Founded in 1910. CAPTION(S): 2 Photos, Box Photo: (1--color) Felix Hernandez, right, of the Te amsters union tells Price Pfister workers he'll join fight to put stop to layoffs. (2--color) Price Pfister workers protest layoffs and a plant relocation to Mexicali, Mexico. Michael Owen Baker/Daily News Box: Price Pfister at a glance (see text) |
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