American Fuel Cell & Coated Fabrics Co. of Magnolia announced this week that “a substantial portion of the workforce will remain employed” until November 2017 and “potentially beyond.”
This news follows last week’s announcement that Amfuel’s plant in Magnolia would close as a new plant opens in Wichita Falls, Texas.
Cammie Hambrice, executive director of Magnolia Economic Development Corp., said between 225 and 250 are employed at the facility that is set to close. She said the organization has been working with the Amfuel management, which purchased the company in June 2015, by making resources available and bringing partners to the table to help with new equipment and relocation.
Those partners include the Arkansas Economic Development Commission, Arkansas Manufacturing Solutions and Southern Arkansas University Tech.
“We were saddened” when Amfuel announced it would be closing the plant, Hambrice said, calling the announcement this week that the plant would continue into 2017 a surprise.
“I’m very excited about it,” she said.
Amfuel said its executives met with representatives from the United Steelworkers Local 607L on Tuesday to discuss the closure.
“The discussions were fruitful, and the company and the union left the meeting committed to crafting a mutually acceptable plan and process that will keep as many workers employed in Magnolia as possible for as long as possible,” according to a joint news release.
A timeline for the final decommissioning of the plant has not been determined.
“The union and Amfuel management have formed a cooperative partnership since the takeover in January,” Michael Martin, a representative of the Steelworkers union, said in the news release. “As unfortunate as this turn of events is, we intend to continue our cooperative efforts to support our membership and to aid them to the best of our ability through this trying time.”
Amfuel CEO Britt Gourley said the aging plant is falling apart.
“We have emphasized a number of times that the walls of the Magnolia structure are essentially crumbling around us,” Gourley said. “Only cooperation with the union and concerted effort and dedication of our employees has kept it standing for this long.
“We remain committed to our employees, to our union partners, and to the Magnolia community, to thoroughly evaluate all of our options in Magnolia to keep as many people at work for as long as possible, and to minimize the unavoidable effects to the greatest extent possible.”
The parties are scheduled to meet several more times in the coming weeks to continue negotiations.
“To comment on negotiations that are, by their nature, private is to really invite misunderstandings, mistrust and inconsistent messages,” Gourley told Arkansas Business by email. “That all said, we will come forth with our union colleagues with additional press releases as we progress.”
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