Its product line is known to keep going and going and going, but Energizer factory workers in Wisconsin just learned that their employment with the company will be doing the opposite.
Reports have emerged that Energizer has informed workers in the communities of Fennimore and Portage that the plants that employ them will both be shuttered within the next two years.
The company issued the following statement to a local news station, saying it was “in communications with colleagues and their union representatives about the future of (its) Fennimore and Portage facilities in Wisconsin.”
The station points out that, at the time of the statement, the company had yet to confirm the layoffs through a notice with the state’s Department of Workforce Development, though it’s key to note that is not required this far out.
The workers in question – some 600 of them – are represented by the Teamsters union, who issued a press release in response to the announcement, alleging that the jobs will be outsourced overseas and moved to a non-union plant in North Carolina.
According to a recent press release issued by the Teamsters, Energizer provided few details to workers related to the wind down, just that it would take place in the next 12-24 months. They blasted the company’s plan to “deport” the jobs, with Teamsters General President Sean M. O’Brien adding that “the American public should be outraged by these plans.”
The press release goes on to quote O’Brien as saying, “Our entire union is furious. If Energizer thinks it’s going to outsource American jobs and destroy Wisconsin communities, we’ve got news for them — the Teamsters are coming and we will stop at nothing to protect American workers.”
The workers at the two plants currently produce batteries for the Everready and Rayovac brands, along with those used for hearing aids.
