HARRODSBURG, Ky. (LEX 18) — Harrodsburg Mayor Art Freeman confirmed Tuesday morning that 120 workers have been temporarily laid off from Hitachi Automotive as the strike between United Auto Workers and General Motors enters the second week.
The temporary layoff will begin today.
GM and the UAW union have been unable to come to an agreement on wages. Many companies nationwide, such as Hitachi, are feeling the pinch as demand screeches to a halt.
Hitachi in Berea has not been affected by the strike.
LEX 18 has reached out to Hitachi Automotive and they sent a statement around 1 p.m. on Tuesday.
The statement read, in part:
"During the first week of the GM strike we were able to continue to building inventories of certain parts, conduct additional training for our team members on the affected lines, move employees to other lines and conduct other value-added projects. We also offered employees the opportunity to take Paid Time Off (vacation time) or to take voluntary unpaid time off. Our hope was that there would be a quick end to the strike and that we could get back to our regular operating schedule as soon as this week."
The statement also said that the plant would continue to operate with the remaining 1,000 employees. They also said that they are continuing employee benefits for the affected employees and providing all the assistance they can to help those workers get unemployment benefits.
The company also said that the affected employees will be back to work as soon as the strike ends.
According to the company, the plant located in Berea, Kentucky will be unaffected.
