Goodyear to end tyre production at Quebec facility by Q2

Akron, Ohio - Goodyear didn't waste any time in naming a plant where it would reduce tyre-building capacity in addition to its Tyler, Texas, facility.

The company announced on 4 Jan. it would discontinue tyre production at its Valleyfield, Quebec, plant, where it makes radial passenger and light truck tyres. The plan is to turn the 43-year-old site into a materials mixing centre by the end of the second quarter. This is similar to the events at Wolverhampton, UK, where the company ended tyre production, but continued with mixing operations at the factory.

There are about 1000 hourly and salaried employees in Valleyfield; the mixing centre is expected to house about 200 people, Goodyear said. The estimated capacity at the plant is 24 000 units per day.

The company´s Valleyfield announcement comes only one week after the master contract covering more than 12 000 workers at 12 US tyre and rubber product factories was ratified, ending an 86-day strike at those sites. About 400 workers at four Canadian plants- not including Valleyfield - approved separate contracts, putting them back to work as well.

An irony of the Valleyfield closure is that the production workers there are unionised, just not by the USW. More than 800 workers are represented by the Canadian labour union Syndicat Canadien des Communications, de l´Energie et du Papier. The workers were once with the United Rubber Workers - now part of the USW - but left in the mid-1980s.

The USW does represent a small group of 60 or so technical and office workers in Valleyfield. That local struck against Goodyear in June 2000.

From Rubber & Plastics News (A Crain publication)

Press release from Goodyear