THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, February 4, 1997 TAG: 9702040220
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY CHRISTOPHER DINSMORE, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 62 lines
Workers being furloughed by Metro Machine Corp. won't be rehired until at least July, the ship repair firm's top executive said Monday.
Metro Machine will lay off the entire blue-collar workforce of 560 at its Norfolk shipyard on March 1. About 90 white-collar employees will remain at the yard, including product managers, administrative support and engineering personnel, Metro Machine President Richard Goldbach said.
Metro specializes in the overhaul and repair of Navy ships at the yard in Norfolk's Berkley section, across the Eastern Branch of the Elizabeth River from downtown Norfolk. It's one of the region's larger ship repair facilities.
Metro began notifying workers Saturday of the layoffs, which it blames on a delay in a contract for the overhaul of a military cargo ship from March until July.
``There's not a lot of alternative work to pursue in that time-frame,'' Goldbach said.
The five-month layoff is bad news for Metro Machine's workers and the effect will ripple through the region's economy.
``I don't know what people are going to do,'' said Mike Fleenor, assistant chief steward with Local 2000 of the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, which represents the yard's blue-collar workers. ``I don't really see a whole lot out there right now.''
Some Metro Machine employees were already out Monday looking for jobs at other Hampton Roads shipyards, said an executive at a competing yard.
The layoffs shocked Metro employees, who are used to some stability compared to other yards.
``Steady work has always been one of the things that Metro had going for it,'' said Fleenor, an eight-year employee.
Even though it hadn't won the contract, Metro Machine had been counting on it to keep its workforce busy, Goldbach said.
The contract is for the ammunition ship Mount Baker, which is being transferred from the Navy to the Military Sealift Command. The ship will be overhauled and refurbished for 11 months, so it can be crewed by civilian mariners.
Had that contract been awarded on schedule and won by Metro Machine, the layoff would have been avoided, Goldbach said.
The contract was delayed by a funding shortfall, said Marge Holtz, spokeswoman for the Military Sealift Command. ``We just didn't have the money,'' she said.
The contract will now be awarded in April and work will begin on it in July, Holtz said.
If Metro Machine wins the overhaul, it will be able to recall the workers in July. If it doesn't win, it may not start recalling them until August for work at its shipyard in Chester, Pa., Goldbach said.
Metro will need a maximum of 250 workers from its Norfolk yard to work on a Navy fleet oiler in the Pennsylvania yard.
Metro is now finishing up work on two Navy warships that will be returned to the fleet by the end on February. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo by GARY C. KNAPP/File
Workers from Metro Machine exit the Norfolk shipyard during a shift
change. Five hundred sixty blue-collar employees will be let go
temporarily.
KEYWORDS: METRO MACHINE CORP. LAYOFFS