Clinton Delphi plant to close

by MBJ Newswires

Published: September 17,2009

Tags: Clinton, Delphi, economy, jobs, unemployment

CLINTON — The Delphi plant in Clinton will close by Dec. 31, taking 280 jobs from the city.

Company spokeswoman Rachelle Valdez said Wednesday that layoffs will begin Nov. 16 at the plant, which opened in the early 1970s.

“We’ve been expecting this for two years, and that it would happen sooner rather than later,” Clinton Mayor Rosemary Aultman said. “Anytime you have people losing their jobs, you empathize and sympathize with them.”

Aultman couldn’t detail the impact on sales tax revenue, but said Delphi pays $120,000 annually in property taxes.

Delphi owns the property – two buildings and a second plant closed in 2006.

Valdez said the company has not decided what to do with the property.

Valdez said workers will receive severance packages based on years of service for salaried employees and a union agreement for hourly workers.

Valdez said the closing comes amid declining customer demand for the cable and connection systems manufactured there coupled with general economic conditions in North America.

The company’s Brookhaven plant was not affected by the announcement.

The Clinton plant produces cable and wiring connectors for a variety of auto manufacturers. Production will shift to Warren, Ohio.

The announcement comes as Delphi is preparing to exit a bankruptcy reorganization that began in 2005. In July, a bankruptcy judge approved the company’s exit plan.