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Ansonia Copper & Brass to Cut Jobs

Posted on: Tuesday, 20 December 2005, 21:00 CST

By Rob Varnon, Connecticut Post, Bridgeport

Dec. 21--The president of Ansonia Copper & Brass said Tuesday that he expects to cut this month fewer than 40 jobs from its work force of 263.

President Ray McGee made the remarks after the state Department of Labor announced all 263 workers would be eligible to receive retraining and job search benefits through a special program.

However, that eligibility is based on workers being laid off, and McGee said Tuesday that the layoffs wouldn't affect every worker.

McGee said he filed the petition, which requires that he list the total number of workers, to get Alternative Trade Adjustment Assistance benefits for employees who might lose their jobs.

That program provides training and job search help to workers who lose their jobs because of foreign competition. McGee has cited higher raw materials costs, a slowdown in the shipping industry and foreign competition as the reasons for a reduction in business and the need to cut jobs.

McGee had been negotiating with the United Steelworkers of America Local 6445 to reduce the work force at Ansonia Copper & Brass, but the union filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board against the company Dec. 6 claiming executives would not bargain over the cuts.

Willie Lee Sanders, Local 6445 president, recently said workers have numerous complaints over how they are being treated and that he was pursuing the NLRB complaint.

The NLRB's Hartford office confirmed Tuesday that it had received the complaint this month.

Sanders claims workers have not seen a dramatic drop in activity at the plant and that McGee is asking workers to do multiple jobs to boost profits. Sanders has not responded to phone calls for further comments.

McGee said he has a meeting scheduled with the union this week to discuss the matter further. He said market conditions and competition are the root cause of the cuts.

The tension between the union and management has not escaped Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-3.

While attending an event at PEZ Candy in Orange on Tuesday, DeLauro said her office is monitoring the situation.

The negotiations over job cuts are ongoing, but the labor department certified that all 263 employees working at Ansonia Copper & Brass' Waterbury and Ansonia facilities as eligible for trade assistance benefits.

Nancy Steffens, a labor department spokeswoman, said companies have to list all of their employees when they file, but that doesn't mean Ansonia Copper & Brass is closing down.

She said the department is unsure of how many workers will be affected because the company has not filed a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notice. A WARN notice is required if a company cuts 33 percent of its work force, Steffens said.

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Source: Connecticut Post

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