THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, February 2, 1997 TAG: 9702020098
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TOM SHEAN, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: 75 lines
Workers at Metro Machine Corp. were told Saturday that the Norfolk ship-repair yard will begin laying off more than 600 employees - the bulk of its work force - on March 1.
The yard, which specializes in repairing and overhauling Navy ships, blamed the layoffs on a delay in receiving a contract for work on a military supply ship.
``This development and related matters made the decision reflected by this letter inescapable,'' Metro President Richard A. Goldbach said in a letter dated Friday to the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers union local.
The Boilermakers union organized workers at Metro's Norfolk yard in late 1995. Last summer, it won a three-year contract for Metro's workers.
In his letter, Goldbach said Metro expected the layoffs to be temporary but did not say when workers might be called back. The layoffs, he said, will affect all classifications of workers at the yard. On Saturday, workers said the total work force is about 700.
Goldbach could not be reached Saturday for comment on the letter, which was posted on certain bulletin boards at the yard Saturday. Yard workers said Goldbach is scheduled to meet with Metro's employees Monday morning.
Among some day-shift workers, reactions to the letter were muted. ``I don't think it's really hit them yet,'' said Dudley Jewell, a machinist from Chesapeake.
Jewell said he couldn't complain about the prospect of being laid off because the company has provided good health-care benefits and has been a good employer.
However, others said they were worried about being out of work for several months. ``The only positive thing was that they gave you some warning,'' said one worker, who declined to give his name.
A yard electrician who asked not to be identified said he could fall back on his Navy retirement. However, some Metro employees could see their savings drained if the layoffs last several months, he said.
``If you put away a few dollars in savings, this is where it will go,'' the electrician said. ``For a lot of people, this job is the only thing they have.''
The Metro yard, on the Eastern Branch of the Elizabeth River in Berkley, has been working on two Navy ships - a destroyer and a landing ship. Employees said the work is almost complete and that both ships are due to depart shortly.
Metro's letter to the union said the yard had expected to receive a Military Sealift Command contract for work on the USNS Mount Baker. That ``would have provided sufficient work to continue our present work force level,'' the letter said.
However, the Sealift Command disclosed last Wednesday that selection of a yard had been delayed two months. In addition, the start of work on the Mount Baker had been postponed three months, the letter said.
For years, Metro and other ship-repair yards in the region have gone through periods of boom and bust, depending on the availability of Navy overhaul and repair work.
However, Metro's work force has been busy for several months, with many employees working overtime and on weekends. ILLUSTRATION: GARY C. KNAPP color photo
Metro Machine employees exit the ship-repair yard Saturday. A letter
announcing temporary layoffs to begin March 1 was posted on bulletin
boards at the yard.
Graphic
ABOUT METRO MACHINE CORP.
-- Specializes in overhauling and repairing Navy ships
-- Has shipyards in the Berkley section of Norfolk and in
Pennsylvania; working on development of another yard near
Jacksonville, Fla.
-- Employs about 700 in Norfolk
-- Production workers in Norfolk yard represented by
International Brotherhood of Boilermakers
KEYWORDS: FEDERAL CONTRACT LAYOFF