Farmers will plant the most acres in a generation this year, led by the biggest corn crop since World War II, taking advantage of the highest agricultural prices in at least four decades.Metaldyne Corp. will lay off an additional 50 workers from its Edon, Ohio, plant in coming weeks, a spokeswoman said Monday.
The bankrupt auto parts maker blamed a changing automotive industry for the move.
“It has to do with the Chrysler business changes,” spokeswoman Marge Sorge said.
She was referring to operational changes Chrysler Group LLC is making under the management of Fiat SpA.
There are 171 hourly workers at the plant and 31 salaried employees. An additional 30 workers already are on layoff, Sorge said.
Hourly workers earn between $15.75 and $18 an hour.
The plant makes wheel hubs, steering components and other parts for automotive chassis.
Two other area Metaldyne plants – one in Bluffton and the other in Fremont – make powertrain components. No layoffs are planned at those plants.
The Plymouth, Mich.-based company declared bankruptcy in March.
In August, a private equity firm, MD Investors Corp., moved to buy most Metaldyne assets during an auction in bankruptcy court. The deal is expected to close before Oct. 1, Sorge said.
The layoffs mean more bad economic news for Williams County, which has had the worst unemployment rate of Ohio’s 88 counties since April. In July, the unemployment rate stood at 17.5 percent.
