More than 300 to lose jobs with Pa. Kraft plant's closing

The massive Upper Macungie Township plant that has served as the local home of Kraft since 1972 won't have any of the company's employees working within its walls by the end of the year.

Kraft Heinz Co. is expected to close its manufacturing facility at 7352 Industrial Blvd. in phases, with employee terminations beginning July 31 and continuing into the fourth quarter, according to Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act notice filed with the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry.

In all, 341 workers will lose their jobs. The employee separations, which include 21 salaried workers and 320 hourly workers, are permanent, and there are no bumping rights for any of the affected employees, the notice states.

Kraft Heinz spokesman Michael Mullen said the plant's employees will receive severance benefits and other support to help them pursue other job opportunities.

Mullen said Kraft Heinz has decided to extend production of its non-Tassimo coffee lines at the Upper Macungie plant through November, which is when the factory is slated to close for good.

That means the plant will close one year after Kraft Heinz first announced it would close the Upper Macungie facility and six others in the United States and Canada over the next 12 to 24 months as part of a downsizing that would shed 2,600 jobs.

Mullen added that Kraft Heinz is offering "strong incentives" for about a third of the plant's employees to continue working at the facility through November.

"To maintain high production levels, we will also be offering employees on other lines, including Tassimo, the opportunity to stay on," Mullen said. "This extension does not affect the timing of the factory's closure in November."

Kraft Heinz also is trying to sell its 907,610-square-foot Upper Macungie plant, which sits on a 92-acre site.

"We continue to receive strong interest in the potential sale of the facility," Mullen said.

In addition to coffee products for Tassimo, the local plant makes A.1. Steak Sauce and Grey Poupon mustard. The plant's production of Grey Poupon will be shifting to an existing plant in Michigan, which is expected to receive $17.2 million in investment and create 50 more jobs.

In addition, Kraft Heinz has already moved two Tassimo lines to its facility in Canada and is continuing to move additional production lines there from the Lehigh Valley.

Because of the company's decision to shift work out of the country, Kraft workers filed a petition for the Trade Adjustment Assistance program, which provides benefits and support to workers who lose their jobs due to the impact of international trade. Those potential benefits include job training, income support, job search and relocation allowances.

According to a May 23 decision listed online, the U.S. Labor Department certified the petition, determining that all workers of the local Kraft plant, including on-site leased workers from Kelly Services, who will become separated from the company are eligible to apply for adjustment assistance.

Kraft Heinz, the fifth-largest food and beverage company in the world, has been cutting costs since the merger of Kraft and H.J. Heinz closed last July. While announcing better-than-expected quarterly profit in early May, Kraft Heinz said it achieved cost savings of about $225 million in the first quarter and is on pace to fully realize $1.5 billion in savings in 2017.

jon.harris@mcall.com

Twitter: @ByJonHarris

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