The company decides against rebuilding the furnace following a recent leak which came during a period of lower production.
The Millville Moulded Glass facility in Millville, New Jersey plans on a mass lay-off of 115 employees according to documents submitted to the state Department of Labor and Workforce Development by Gerresheimer Glass Inc.
Gerresheimer filed its WARN information – Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification – with the state Thursday about the lay-offs.
“Gerresheimer continually reviews its business options to ensure global competitiveness, improved business performance and a high level of customer satisfaction,” said Norman Angel, vice president of the company’s Moulded Glass division in the United States, in an emailed statement. “While these decisions are not easy, we need to make strategic changes to remain competitive and preserve our position in the market. We are sensitive to the impact this decision will have on our Millville employees and, as always, we will move forward with care and respect.”
The lay-offs will go into effect January 5, 2015, and Gerresheimer Glass is required to notify its employees 60 days before the lay-offs go into effect, according to the WARN Act.
Of the employees, 112 are part of the Glass, Molders, Pottery Local #219, which is based in Media, Pennsylvania. The remaining three employees worked in quality supervision, customer service and human resources. The Millville Moulded Glass facility employs 261 people, according to the company.
A union representative could not be reached for comment.
The workers being laid off from Gerresheimer Glass manufactured clear and amber glass for pharmaceuticals for food, beverage, cosmetics and industrial markets, according to the WARN notice.
“A decision was taken to not rebuild ‘A Furnace’ following a recent leak incident and at a time when the three production lines attached to this furnace were already underutilized,” the WARN notice states under its reason for the lay-offs.
The furnace produced soda lime products. All future soda lime production will occur at another facility.