Libbey Bankruptcy – August 7, 2020

As our negotiations with Libbey continue, management continues to tell us that Libbey’s hourly workers and retirees must accept sacrifices, and that if we don't, the federal court has the authority to impose them.

Your bargaining committee understands better than anyone that if our facilities and our jobs are going to continue to exist beyond the next few months, we need to make changes in our contracts, but management’s demands to date are extreme and are unfair when compared to how they’ve treated others, including management and top executives.

Libbey’s lenders have imposed a timeline on management to achieve certain milestones in the bankruptcy process. This timeline severely inhibits how much we can hope to preserve in terms of jobs, earnings and benefits.

For that reason, our goal continues to be that any sacrifices offered by union members are matched by shared sacrifice from management and other and that their business plan secures just as much for the future of our jobs, earnings and benefits.

We are not fighting to save these facilities for management to turn them over to contractors or for the benefit of the leaders who own the debt we are doing this for our families and communities.

Stay strong and be safe. We’ll keep you updated as we proceed.

In Solidarity – USW/IAM - Libbey Bargaining Committee