Exodus Buckeye Style: A Documentary about Plant Closings Across Ohio

Right. Thing in return. Our strategy is to give people the Sunbelt whatever it takes we have the whole job. We're very fortunate we have seven states that are Honda they picked because of the research development center how do you sell hot on Ohio. We don't sell harmed on anything except they want to come to and we had to make certain things that we do we're all international. Like what. Well they had to have a railroad track and that would help them with the railroad track and the county commissioners help them up start with some tax abatement. We have done nothing for them that we don't do brother ENDA. Jim roads tax business a major shareholder in the Wendy's hamburger chain. It's no surprise that Rhodes coined the slogan profit is not a dirty word in Ohio. As governor wrote to say much of the state's industrial base erode in response Rose has traveled far and wide to Japan to the People's Republic of China even neighboring Michigan

seeking to open up markets for Buckeye business men in their commercial and industrial enterprises to Ohio but it's a race against time. Like so much of the Northeast and Midwest Ohio is your traditional home of American industry. But now the mills and assembly plants are growing old and investors are finding it more profitable to relocate divisions sometimes entire operations outside the industrial heartland. The runaway shop syndrome is. As capital flows out of the industrial belt so do people. But not as quickly as investment. People aren't as mobile as money. Money feels no attachment to the family neighborhoods and support network. But people seek roots. They and their parents and their parents parents have battled long and hard to eke out a secure future. And now that future seemingly so bright in the 1950s. If you were concerned. With. Public officials reflecting that fear show willingness to follow Governor old formula. Do anything to attract and retain jobs and

industry. Ohio like most all states in the region is adjusting its tax laws at the state and municipal levels to be competitive with the Sunbelt officials hope that short term loss of the tax dollars from business will be offset by long term financial commitments and investment. But thus far the record is unconvincing. Critics of tax incentives charge that the incentive simply reward business for investment decisions they plan to make anyway. A number of studies indicate that taxes are near the bottom of the list of criteria and business location on the station. Meanwhile these critics know as this is a share of the tax hole big fines. Governments are finding it increasingly difficult to provide basic human services. Senate Bill 188 is an attempt to cushion the impact of plant closing on Ohio communities.

Introduced by Columbus Democrat Michael Schwartz Baldor community Readjustment Act enjoys the solid backing of organized labor as well as a number of church community and minority groups. The Cleveland Plain Dealer recently editorialized in favor of legislation like that proposed in SB 188. But by and large the bill has been sharply attacked in editorials across the state. Big business and its lobbying arm in Columbus the Ohio Manufacturers Association has devoted itself to defeating what it calls the industrial ransom act. The rector for labor problems at the Manufacturers Association. Joseph Craig tell us why. There is no way. That employers can project. Two years in advance what his financial position is going to be and they would be required of the bill a two year notice before a company can leave fisheries. This is caused by three situations. First of all there's no advance notice on union contract increases of wage and benefits. There is no advance notice on tax increases on

workman's compensation benefits on unemployment compensation contributions so there's no way an employer can sit here and say two years from now this is what I'm going to do because there's no way you can know what his financial position is going to be because he doesn't know what forces are going to be setting in at that point. Isn't it true though that the barge manufacturers tend to plan year in advance where they're going to manufacture and what they're going to manufacture what have you. Well there is. Probably a larger a company becomes the more emphasis there is on future planning. But this is only one of the reasons that there would be. With the bill another major problem is is that any company that is considering moving into the state of Ohio has to be cognizant that this is now seriously being considered by the legislature and they're going to think twice whether they're going to be locked in to. A provision law which would make it virtually impossible for them ever to leave if that was in their

financial best interests somewhere down the line. So what you're saying is that will scare industry that prospectively would move to Ohio out of the state. I think it's already doing that. There may be companies who may want to leave while the getting's good before they are locked in by such an unreasonable proposal and there may be companies who have to take this into consideration. In their plans whether to move to Ohio or not. Other provisions of the bill deal with severance pay for workers want to plant closer leaves and paying to a Community Assistance Fund a certain percentage of profit in order to help the economy of that area redevelop how you feel about those provisions of the bill. Well the severance bill or seven pay provision of the bill. It is something that quite often union contracts already provide for. We feel that a provision like this should be left to free collective bargaining not mandated by state legislation. To the extent that the legislature gets in there

to upset the whole process of free open collective bargaining the provision that would require that a sum of money be paid to the local community. You've got a situation let's say a company in Columbus wants to move out to Dublin 10 miles to the north. Possibly they should consider the company or the community which is gaining business pay some sort of money to the community. It's a losing business to have to pay. Sum of money to a local community from private contractors coffers of the private This is tremendously unreasonable. Does a boss in the manufactures condemnation of the bill has till late succeeded in tying the measure up in the Commerce and Labor Committee. The bill was introduced in 1977 in 1978. Committee chair Democrat William Bowen of Cincinnati held one proponent hearing on the bill and never scheduled another hearing or committee vote on the measure.

Meanwhile more plants shut down and thousands more were added to the jobless rolls. Supporters of the bill became increasingly restless. They argue it's only common decency to warn employees ahead of time of a plant closing so that people can plan for the future and a guaranteed severance pay the workers will protect those not covered by union contracts and payments to a development fund could help offset the damage right. The communities economic and tax base. A delegation of Labor minority and community leaders met with Senate President Oliver OKC and committee chair Bowen in the late summer of 1979. The two Democratic leaders gave their word that the bill would receive several hearings in the upcoming legislative session but no commitment was made to vote the bill out of committee. Its first hearing of the 1979 80 legislative session was held on the evening of Tuesday August 25th. About 1000 men and women from across Ohio came to Columbus to register their support for Senate bill 188. Initially Senate

president OK State agreed to accommodate the supporters by scheduling the proponent hearing for the Veterans Memorial Hall just across the river from the Capitol building. But several days before the hearing OKC changed his mind and scheduled the hearing in the Capitol building instead. The scheduled hearing room has a seating capacity of less than 200. He'll have a public interest campaign. The prime organizational movers behind the community Readjustment Act warned OK sick that they expected a crowd of 1000 but ok sick insisted on the Capitol hearing room saying that holding the hearing at that memorial would pose a security problem. By doing so. OK sic a Democrat from the Akron area further antagonize his already testy relationship with organized labor. Ohio AFL CIO secretary treasurer Lawrence Smith and the Democratic leadership is hostile to this type of legislation and they have made it difficult. Going.

Going. Going. Going. Going. Going. Going. Going. Going. Going. And they said it couldn't be done.

Aren't you director of the Ohio public interest campaign. I understand there's a bill up for a hearing in a committee that has to do with plant closing what's the number that deal. I am a right as a crowd of polls for the rally and other Michaels on the Capitol steps beaming. Obviously the support for his bill. I think the legislature is going to have to take these people seriously. And I'm really enthusiastic about presenting the bill again and having an opportunity to have the people impress the senators with their sincerity and their commitment to this bill does this really mean things to senators when they see people like this out here or will they just wave to them and go about their business the next day when they leave. Well it's hard to tell. I hope they really do take this seriously and I think some of them will. It's unusual to have this many citizens come to the state house and just on that basis alone I think it's really important that they take notice of it because we have so many people here tonight.

It's unusual for a senator a dignified type person to be associated with rowdy crowds like this here people chanting in front of the Capitol building does that make you feel a little funny being associated with a group of people like this. Well I don't I don't think there are rowdy crowds I think they're enthusiastic people have a very solid point of view and one that they. Put across to. The rest of the Senate and I'm very proud to be associated. Folks. Someone to plant closings are certainly not far distant. Issue 1 introduce Russ Baxter who many of you know is the past president of Steelworkers Local 21 63 at Youngstown Sheet 2. He's now president of the Youngstown area AFL CIO Council. Russ Baxter but. When you start out that they're out of shape. So I

say come down here to help that's tragic. I think it's important for us to recognize the fact that this is an effort this plant closing Bill effort that's going on now not only in Ohio but it's beginning to happen in several in actually 11 or 12 other states. And we're fortunate to have with us today two legislators one from Pennsylvania one from Illinois. Who are co-sponsors of similar bills and their legislators legislators. But I think it shows that in fact we've got an idea whose time has come and it's not just in Ohio it's spreading all over the industrial northeast and Midwest co-sponsor of a very similar bill in the Pennsylvania legislature. State Representative Dave Richardson from Philadelphia. Good evening thank you very much for inviting us here to share with you in this very important bill

Senate don't want to be what we need to understand is that unless we stand up and fight this not only will that happen in Ohio what happened in Pennsylvania New York Chicago Detroit Baltimore and I can go on and on and on. So what I'm saying here today is that we must all struggle together because we all have a common enemy. And unless we begin to deal with a common enemy as a collective will never win any fights. So our brothers this is let's get on the ball. Let's pass a Senate bill 188. And when you go into them here make sure they hear you. Frederick Douglass said there's no struggle there's no problem right on God. The Reverend Charles Rawlings. A hundred years ago industry began to arrive in this in the middle of an atmosphere of sweatshops starvation strikes for the

miners long hours child labor and the answer to those conditions was always that if we're going to have a society that has justice and where people can live and care for each other you have to turn that around. A hundred years later. We're living in a time when multinational corporations located in Dallas and a lot of other places are tearing out the fabric of the jobs in and out. The answer to that is justice. And we have to keep this job until justice is done. Thank you very much. Not. Someone who has been in the fight for plant closing legislation for a long time. The international president of the United rubber workers. Thank you.

Thank you very much. You know I don't think you have to be talked to to talk about the problems of plant and what happens when I do and what cannibalism these companies are using when they plant the problems at all the human rights and property rights and this is why you're here to. Help. People this. This song is called The Battle Hymn of solidarity forever.

Everybody. OK lads. That was. Half one. Now. Now. Now. The crowd was divided into several groups. Each group designated by a different colored card.

The groups would with one group in the hearing room at a time while the bulk of the crowd stood chanting their support for Senate bill 188 in the Capitol Rotunda. According to one of those who testified locked himself in his office on the second floor of the Capitol building turned off the lights and holed up there until the hearing concluded in the hearing room. The Senate president was lambasted by Speaker after speaker for failing to accommodate the citizens present. Dorothy Ryan president of the Council of senior citizens. Shear somewhere you lie. We thank you. Time. Time. Of the business department

employees in the private sector. Employers and security. Sure 90 percent. Why.

The committee with five of six Democrats in attendance and two of three Republicans heard testimony from the former mayor of Cincinnati Theodore Barry who argued that plant closings especially hurt minority workers. And Martha Diller of the Ohio black political assembly offered evidence that women as the last hired first fired were also particularly victimized by industrial flight bus and college economists Professor Barry Bluestone challenged the arguments against the bill made by the manufacturers association list on noted that the bill only applied to employers of 100 or more in the US it wouldn't burden small businesses. In fact Bluestone argued it would help smaller enterprises by discouraging unstable fly by night operations from locating in the state. The only other industries that might be scared off by the bill aren't worth having either Bluestone argued. These are divisions of conglomerates which get sold to for short term profit by the parent company and then left to die. He cited the example of Youngstown Sheet and tube which was owned by the Watts corporation of New Orleans.

We are not final on expanding in Ohio or stopping business from coming to the state. Would you be interested in expanding our nation to creating the opportunity will not you think it by legislation. Not that we don't want to say what you want to create a stable profitable environment. Views will be contested by the manufacturers and their economists but legislators are used to such a vocal and visible displays of support for legislation. Find it a bit more difficult now to let the bill gather in committee. They know that folks back in the district are watching them and want action. Internet.

One. Hundred eighty. Six hundred. To. Even the director of United Auto Workers Community Reinvestment Act in the Senate hearings last year. Back again in September twenty three. I waited long enough. Twenty five. Cincinnati one thousand two hundred. Three. Thank.

You. Thank. You. Thank. You. Thank you.