HAMBURG, N.Y. — It is another blow to Western New York's once proud tradition of steel production. Republic Steel employees in Hamburg found out Thursday they were laid off indefinitely as the steel plant on Route 5 shuts down for now, with work shifted to Mexico.
2 On Your Side sought more information Friday as stunned workers and town officials react to this difficult news.
The now furloughed workers say they were walked out of the plant Thursday, and frankly, it was a surprise to them. They're hesitant to say much more on camera because they're still trying to to find out with their union what benefits they still have.
Hamburg town supervisor Randy Hoak agreed, noting "This caught us by surprise. We learned about it as everybody else did, as the employees learned about it yesterday."
Overall, 178 Republic employees are affected here and another 300 in Canton, Ohio, south of Cleveland.
Many worked 15, 20, or more years at the plant, which produced steel bars. They've been through various owners and even bankruptcy since Bethlehem Steel left in 1983, after employing more than 20,000 in the 1950s and 60s. Republic was a remnant of that major facility on the shore of Lake Erie.
Republic's operations are owned by the Grupo Simec company, which is based in Guadalajara, Mexico, and that is where much of the work from this shuttered plant will now go.
Some employees do say production had been tapering off in recent months, but there was no real indication it would cease completely.
Government officials say they have reached out to the company for more information, but they're obviously concerned for the workforce. The majority are represented by the United Steelworkers Union, which did not return our calls on Friday.
Hoak added: "Our hearts go out to the families thar are losing jobs, that may have to make the decision to leave our community. I hope that they can find other opportunities. I'm optimistic in the job market, and I hope those folks don't give up on Western New York."
We also know that Republic Steel in Hamburg and their sister facility out in Canton, Ohio, did face a lot of scrutiny over pollution concerns with lead, and the company said that was a factor in deciding to pull out of their U.S. operations and instead continue production down in Mexico.
In a settlement last year with the Federal Justice Department and Environmental Protection Agency, Republic's Mexico-based corporate owner, Grupo Simec, paid a $990,000 fine for lead emissions stemming from lead steel production at that plant in Canton, south of Cleveland.
So now we see the indefinite idling of that facility and the Hamburg plant.
Grupo Simec claims those environmental issues and greater costs guided their decision to transfer operations to its Mexican factories as well as in Brazil
A potential contamination factor was recognized by local officials here as well, as Hoak said, "It's not clean. This particular product that Republic is making is challenging especially when you're dealing with infrastructure that is as old as it is."
We are not aware of any specific discussion of lead emissions at the Hamburg site. But Hoak estimates some structures there date back to the early 1900s.
So while worried about an experienced, veteran workforce and families who might relocate, the town is looking forward with the land left behind. Perhaps there could be remediation and new use like the Erie County-sponsored new industrial park on the other side of Route 5 and further north in Lackawanna.
Hoak says "Do we want to continue with heavy industry? Do we wanna look at some light industry.? Is there opportunity for some retail and commercial activity? Those are all on the table right now. "
The town board will vote Monday on the use a $200,000 dollar grant to help guide potential remediation assessment.
In the meantime County Executive Poloncatz says the county and New York State Department of Labor will "look into whether or not Grupo Simec violated the WARN Act," which stands for Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification.
It requires "covered businesses to provide early warnings of closures and layoffs to all affected employees, employee representatives, the State Department of Labor, and Local Workforce Development Boards."
Also, covered businesses must give notice to the Chief Elected Official of local government where the employer is located. The notice is supposed to give employees, their families, and communities time to transition, seek new employment, and enter workforce training programs with assistance from the Department of Labor and Local Workforce Development Board.