Union workers contend bankrupt Latrobe plastics company conducted unfair labor practices

A small group of union workers at a bankrupt Latrobe plastics company have been picketing outside the plastics plant the past few days to protest the firm’s failure to recall them back to their jobs.

Westmoreland Plastics Inc. laid off its union workforce of about 14 workers in December when it filed bankruptcy.

It recalled about five of those workers without regard to the seniority clause in the union contract, said Bob Wagner, president of the International Union of Electrical Workers-Communications Workers of America Local 8867.

“They did this right before Christmas, which was not very nice,” said Wagner, who has worked for the firm for 24 years.

The company’s parent firm, Latrobe Associates Inc. filed the Chapter 11 bankruptcy Dec. 1, stating that it had between 100 and 200 creditors who were owed money between $1 million and $10 million, the same dollar range as the value of its assets.

At its Gertrude Street plant, the company manufactures thermoset plastic components for use in a wide range of applications, including aerospace, appliances, electrical distribution equipment, medical devices and metering devices.

Bradley Jackovitz, president and CEO of Latrobe Plastics and Westmoreland Plastics, could not be reached for comment.

The IUE-CWA union workers had their health insurance abruptly canceled at the end of November, Wagner said. During that same month, Jackovitz received a salary of $11,538 from his company, according to the financial statement.

The company had paid the UPMC Health Plan $26,194 within 90 days of the bankruptcy, according to a financial statement filed in bankruptcy court. It was not known whether the cancellation of health insurance for the union workers also resulted in the loss of health insurance for Jackovitz.

Wagner said the company did not give the workers any warning it was canceling their health insurance or that the firm would file for bankruptcy shortly after eliminating their health insurance, Wagner said.

Wagner also claimed that Westmoreland Plastics deducted money from the members’ paychecks for their contribution to their 401K retirement plans, but never deposited the money into the workers’ accounts.

The union has responded to the company’s actions by filing four unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board in Pittsburgh, according to the agency. The union has alleged that Westmoreland Plastics modified the existing contract that does not expire until November 2026, refused to provide information, refused to recognize the union and refused to follow the terms of the contract.

“We’re trying to following the CBA (collective bargaining agreement) and we’re trying to get some response from them,” Wagner said. “They won’t talk to the union or the NLRB.”

The case remains open and no hearing has been scheduled, according to the NLRB website.

The company filed for bankruptcy though it also detailed in a financial statement it anticipates it will have a cash flow of $5.35 million from December 2023 through November 2024,

The bankruptcy filing came after Westmoreland Plastics experienced a steady drop in revenue, from $9.1 million in 2021 to $6.36 million in 2022 and $5.6 million last year. It did not list revenue from sales for the 11 months prior to the bankruptcy filing last year.