From staff report
CHARLESTON - A team formed Thursday to help the hundreds of workers losing their jobs at Century Aluminum in Ravenswood will meet next Friday at the high school, the governor said.
The Job Loss Support Team community meeting will be at 3:30 p.m. in the women's gymnasium at Ravenswood High School.
The team was formed on Thursday by Gov. Joe Manchin, the day after Century Aluminum said it will follow through with the shut down of the remaining three potlines at the smelting plant, idling 651 workers by Feb. 20. Manchin led the unsuccessful talks between the company, labor, utility companies and local, state and federal officials to reach a solution to keep the plant from closing.
Manchin said the Support Team of experts from the state will help displaced workers and their families. Bill Monterosso, the head of WorkForce West Virginia in Parkersburg, was in Charleston Thursday attending the emergency meeting with state officials.
"When one West Virginian is hurting, all West Virginians are hurting," Manchin said. "This support team will go beyond programs that we may traditionally associate with layoffs or plant closures. We must help these individuals in every way possible, from educating them on the different assistance programs to job re-training options."
Century Aluminum in December said it was closing a potline affecting 120 employees, but warned the plant could close if it can't cut expenses by 10 percent by February. Another factor was the drop in the price of aluminum, which has nose dived since summer.
The company cut the pay of salaried workers by 12.4 percent and asked the United Steel Workers of America for the same concession. The union represents 560 workers at the plant.
No agreement on pay concessions was reached between the union and the company. The union's Pittsburgh office blamed the closure on "this country's economic meltdown."
"We are living through the most severe economic downturn since the Great Depression and the hard-working people at Ravenswood are among the latest victims," said Steelworkers International President Leo W. Gerard.
"We need to restore confidence in our economy and provide our manufacturing facilities a shot in the arm," he said. "We are calling on Congress to take fast action in passing an economic stimulus package that requires taxpayer dollars to be spent on goods and services that are made in the U.S.A."
Twelve workers will remain at the plant as Century Aluminum has not permanently closed the facility, the union said.
Next to Century Aluminum is Alcan Rolled Products, part of the Rio Tinto conglomerate, which could be impacted by the shut down of Century Aluminum. Alcan, which employs more than 1,200 people, last week said it was laying off 168 workers.
