112 replies to this topic

[+Blank]

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Hostess Brands -- the maker of such iconic baked goods as Twinkies, Devil Dogs and Wonder Bread -- announced Friday that it is asking a federal bankruptcy court for permission to close its operations, blaming a strike by bakers protesting a new contract imposed on them.

The closing will result in Hostess' nearly 18,500 workers losing their jobs as the company shuts 33 bakeries and 565 distribution centers nationwide. The bakers' union represents around 5,000.

Hostess will move to sell its assets to the highest bidder. That could mean new life for some of its most popular products, which could be scooped up at auction and attached to products from other companies.

"We deeply regret the necessity of today's decision, but we do not have the financial resources to weather an extended nationwide strike," said CEO Gregory Rayburn in a statement.

The company had given a 5 p.m. ET deadline for the bakers to return to work or face a shutdown of the company. The unions at Hostess could not be reached immediately for comment on the decision.

Hostess filed for bankruptcy in January, its second trip to bankruptcy court since 2004. It previously emerged from restructuring in 2009 after a four-and-a-half year process.

The company is now controlled by a group of investment firms including hedge funds Silver Point Capital and Monarch Alternative Capital.

In September, one of its major unions, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, voted narrowly to accept a new contract with reduced wages and benefits. The bakers' union rejected the deal, however, prompting Hostess management to secure permission from a bankruptcy court to force a new concession contract on workers.

The new contract cut salaries across the company by 8% in the first year of the five-year agreement. Salaries were then scheduled to bump up 3% in the next three years and 1% in the final year.

Hostess also reduced its pension obligations and its contribution to the employees' health care plan. In exchange, the company offered concessions, including a 25% equity stake for workers and the inclusion of two union representatives on an eight-member board of directors.

http://money.cnn.com...ostess-closing/


NO!! i want my Twinky!! Damn protesters. I always wonder why companies just don't hire new workers to replace the ones on strike. People want the jobs. And i bet alot of the protesters would've rather of kept what they had than lose their job completely.

[Intrinsica]

Well that backfired for the union...

[SpeedyTheSnail]

What will I do without my Cupcakes!

[jakem1]

muggerfugger, on 16 November 2012 - 12:45, said:

NO!! i want my Twinky!! Damn protesters. I always wonder why companies just don't hire new workers to replace the ones on strike. People want the jobs. And i bet alot of the protesters would've rather of kept what they had than lose their job completely.

So you're advocating undermining workers rights so you can have junk food? Nice.

[+Crisp]

Twinkies!!!

[Asrokhel]

I wonder if this'll affect Hostess in Canada, the article fails in that regard.

[+Blank]

jakem1, on 16 November 2012 - 12:57, said:

So you're advocating undermining workers rights so you can have junk food? Nice.

I don't eat this crap. Alot of businesses are going through this. The workers want more more and more. Soon as you give them more they want more again. I don't know the particular problems with Hostess, but i've seen many local places have problems with this. For example Boeing. Every other damn year i have to hear or see the workers picketing outside.
Luckily Boeing makes enough money to deal with this crap.

I'm not going to protest that my boss keeps giving me more. Sometimes you should just be happy with what you have, and realize you're more fortunate than others.

This sounds like a result of that.

[rippleman]

jakem1, on 16 November 2012 - 12:57, said:

So you're advocating undermining workers rights so you can have junk food? Nice.

If you don't like your pay or hours or job, QUIT AND LOOK FOR A NEW F***ING JOB! Its bulls**t that people can force their boss to pay more.

[spacer]

It's sad to see another part of my childhood disappear. As bad as as their food is for you, I am still sad to see Hostess go down the tubes.

I may go to the grocery store after work today and buy some ho-hos for old-times sake.

[Asrokhel]

muggerfugger, on 16 November 2012 - 13:01, said:

The workers want more more and more. Soon as you give them more they want more again.

This is exactly how the TTC operates here in Toronto! Yet, if they are told they are not getting money, they go on strike until the City caves, and fares are raised to give them more money. Yet, the TTC spends the money on frivolous things, like doing the same track replacement for the streetcar on the same stretch of tracks two years [2000 & 2001] in a row.

[TRC]

It is all coming true. Soon we'll have to fight our way through hordes of zombies just to get our Twinkie fix.

[FloatingFatMan]

Twinkies are not food. At best, they're a collection of dodgy chemicals dipped in sugar. Good riddance to it, I say!

Shame about the jobs, though.

[+Jdawg683]

this is why Union's should be illegal. from their unwillingness to concede, 18.5k people are out of work. way to go.

as a reminder - businesses do not exist to serve employees. believe it or not, the business doesnt care about you. they exist to provide a product to the economy and make profit. making profit is their number one concern. Hostess was doing everything it could to stay afloat, but the Union did not understand this fact. they think the business should take care of them when that's not what businesses do. they provide employment to better serve, or expand, their scope and influence. that is all. you are not special.

as cruel as that sounds, it's the truth. i would LOVE to believe that businesses care about their employees. in reality, all that 'caring' is just HR stuff they have to do so they dont get sued.

[neufuse]

FloatingFatMan, on 16 November 2012 - 13:35, said:

Twinkies are not food. At best, they're a collection of dodgy chemicals dipped in sugar. Good riddance to it, I say!

Shame about the jobs, though.

Always someone with an agenda to spread... sheesh

Enriched wheat flour, sugar, corn syrup, niacin, water, high fructose corn syrup, vegetable and/or animal shortening – containing one or more of partially hydrogenated soybean, cottonseed and canola oil, and beef fat, dextrose, whole eggs, modified corn starch, cellulose gum, whey, leavenings (sodium acid pyrophosphate, baking soda, monocalcium phosphate), salt, cornstarch, corn flour, corn syrup, solids, mono and diglycerides, soy lecithin, polysorbate 60, dextrin, calcium caseinate, sodium stearoyl lactylate, wheat gluten, calcium sulphate, natural and artificial flavors, caramel color, yellow #5, red #40

yeah, that is a list of dodgy chemicals... nothing different there then what you get in most other foods made on a large scale

since the majority of the thing is Enriched wheat flour, sugar, corn syrup, niacin, water, high fructose corn syrup, vegetable and/or animal shortening I'd say it was doing pretty well on the normal ingredients list..

[jakem1]

rippleman, on 16 November 2012 - 13:11, said:

If you don't like your pay or hours or job, QUIT AND LOOK FOR A NEW F***ING JOB! Its bulls**t that people can force their boss to pay more.

Apparently the workers did like their pay and hours and that's why they were protesting. What they didn't like was the company's attempt to force a new contract on them that would change their working conditions. Workers have the right to be treated decently and fairly and to strike if they don't feel that they are. If employers can't accept that then they're in the wrong job.