Pennsylvania-based packaging manufacturer Glenshaw Glass has petitioned the federal Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., to make a distressed termination of its defined benefit plan covering some 300 union…
Pennsylvania-based packaging manufacturer Glenshaw Glass has petitioned the federal Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., to make a distressed termination of its defined benefit plan covering some 300 union workers and retirees. It also has asked a union representing production staff to make wage and health-care concessions, a request the union has so far refused. Gary Pastorius, a spokesman for the pension agency, said it was reviewing Glenshaw“s application, which was made in October 2004. The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. insures defined benefit pension plans. Lou Brudnock, president of Local 134 of the Glass, Molders, Pottery, Plastics and Allied Workers International Union, said three local unions agreed to a concessionary contract in 2003 in return for a commitment to fund pensions and invest USD 2 million in operations. Brudnock said the union has been unable to verify the commitment, making it reluctant to agree to further cuts: “He“s getting a break from us already,” Brudnock said. A possible solution in September 2004 came to nought when a potential investor in the company withdrew after flooding put furnaces out of action. As those furnaces were being restarted, an unexpected glass tank failure occurred, Brudnock said. “We“ve got two furnaces running now and the third furnace, we hope we“ll get that restored in the next month and move on,” Brudnock said, adding that Ghaznavi has “financial problems he has to address either by putting in his own money or finding an investor willing to do so.” Ghaznavi took over the plant in 1988 and later acquired controlling interests in several other glass companies that became part of Consumers Packaging Inc. of Toronto. In 2001, Ghaznavi left Consumers Packaging, which had filed for bankruptcy in Canada, and in 2002 agreed to buy back Glenshaw from Consumers Packaging. Glenshaw Glass employs about 375, including salaried and hourly workers. The company began producing bottles in 1895 at a site near the current factory.