You Can Visit Wickliffe, Ohio, Home To A Stimulus-Backed ABB Inc. Plant That Laid Off Ohio Workers Before Expanding In Mexico

ABB Received Over $4.2 Million From The Stimulus To Build A Superconducting Magnet Energy Storage System And Reported 3.93 Jobs. (Recovery.gov, Accessed 4/25/12)

• ABB Received A $12.3 Million Section 48C Advanced Energy Manufacturing Tax Credit. (Internal Revenue Service, Accessed 4/25/12)

• ABB Was Awarded $900,000 By The Department Of Energy To Develop Off-Shore Wind Systems. “ABB Inc. will receive $900,000 to develop wind production profiles and integration analyses for sites where offshore wind farm are likely to be developed.” (“ABB, Duke To Get Federal Wind-Power Funds,” WRAL Tech Wire, 9/8/11)

In May 2009, ABB Announced They Would Lay Off 50 Employees Over The Next Year At Their Wickliffe, Ohio Plant. “About 50 engineering and other research and development employees at ABB Inc.’s facility in Wickliffe will lose their jobs in the coming 12 to 18 months. The Lake County facility, which employs about 550 people, will continue to manufacture control and automation products used in a range of industries. But the industrial giant, based in Zurich, Switzerland, will shut down its R&D functions in Northeast Ohio.” (Frank Bentayou, “ABB Inc. In Wickliffe To Phase Out 50 Jobs,” The Cleveland Plain Dealer, 5/1/09)

• In January 2010, ABB Laid Off 29 Workers At Their Plant In South Boston, Virginia. “A total of 29 hourly positions were eliminated Thursday and Friday affecting ABB employees on all three shifts and reaching across all of the product lines at the South Boston plant, local plant officials confirmed Friday morning. According to Tom Minnich, ABB senior vice-president and general manager, the affected employees were told late on Thursday and early Friday that their jobs would be eliminated.” (Paula I. Bryant, “Recession Claims More Jobs At ABB,” The Gazette Virginian, 1/25/10)

But The Workers Were Eligible For Trade Adjustment Assistance, “Because ABB Transferred Their Work To Mexico.” “Former workers of ABB Inc. of Mt. Pleasant, Westmoreland County, who lost their jobs or were reduced to part-time hours since May 10, 2009, are eligible for retraining, income support and re-employment services under the Trade Adjustment Assistance Act, federal officials said. The ex-employees are eligible for the aid, including a health coverage tax credit, because ABB transferred their work to Mexico. Workers who lose their jobs between now and May 10, 2011, also can receive help.” (“Ex-ABB Workers To Get Help,” Pittsburgh Tribune Review, 7/17/10)