Hugo Boss workers waging "national and international" campaign in fight to keep Cleveland area plant

[OhioChick]

Source: Cleveland.com

December 11, 2014 at 10:07 AM

BROOKLYN, Ohio - The union representing workers at the Hugo Boss plant said it is launching a major, and very public, effort to save the factory the clothing manufacturer intends to close in April.

"There is no doubt that five years ago we fought Hugo Boss to keep this facility open," said Richard Monje, international vice president for the Workers United union, after meeting with workers Wednesday. "We intend on mounting a campaign that is both national and international in scope around the closing of this facility."

This is the second time workers have had to lobby to keep the Tiedeman Road factory from closing. In 2010, after workers waged a yearlong effort, Hugo Boss' Germany-based owners reversed the decision to shutter the plant and move production abroad. Central to that fight -- and the current one -- is that the company has not said the plant is losing money. About 170 people work at the plant, where men's suits are made.

In his more than 30 years in the labor movement, Monje said he has been involved in many battles to keep various clothing plants from closing. In almost all of these cases, he said a company's desire to stem financial losses was key in wanting to move operations to another region or abroad.

Read more: http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2014/12/hugo_boss_workers_waging_natio.html#incart_m-rpt-1

[Omaha Steve]

1. Thank you OhioChick

I appreciate all you do. Especially sounding this alarm. K&R!

OS