Tuesday, February 24, 2009
2/10/2009 - News Release
MBI and the City of Shreveport have an agreement that MBI will lease from the City a large manufacturing facility which was previously occupied by Beaird Company. The final documentation of the transaction between MBI and the City has yet to be completed. At the recommendation of its attorney, MBI is not to mobilize any business activity on the site until the transaction has been finalized.
At the request of the City this lease agreement provides that when MBI begins to hire new employees to work in this facility, it will give preference to individuals who previously worked for Beaird Company. This hiring preference is the result of an agreement between the City and MBI. Beaird Company is not a party to this agreement. Beaird Company is a corporation that is unrelated to and totally separate from MBI. To MBI’s knowledge Beaird Company has gone out of business and has not operated at least since May 2008. Also the United Auto Workers Union is not a party to this agreement between the City and MBI.
MBI has been consistent in its position as it relates to the Shreveport facility in that MBI intends to maximize the site in terms of both opportunity and employment. To this end, we continue our efforts to ensure that joint venture partners work with our existing operations and bring maximum benefit to the community.
MBI remains engaged in serious and deliberate negotiations to locate a joint venture at the facility. While we are anxious to launch this venture we want to do so in a manner that allows us to maintain our history of never having to scale back our workforce or to layoff workers. For this reason, while our negotiations are continuing, we continue to evaluate other opportunities and will announce a venture only after due diligence has convinced us of the long term viability of the venture.
Within the short term, MBI plans to mobilize portions of its existing core business into the Shreveport manufacturing facility. This mobilization is anticipated to involve the transfer of a substantial number of MBI employees currently employed in other communities to the Shreveport area, as well as the hiring of new employees. The recent applications for employment acquired from former Beaird Company employees is part of the ongoing startup process. MBI is also in discussions with several companies who would like to use the facility for a period of 3-12 months to fabricate products. If successful in accomplishing agreements with these other companies, more jobs will be created. This would allow us to begin to get people to work while the facility is being upgraded.
As for as the bigger picture, MBI hopes to announce shortly the details of its discussions that are capable of having up to 500-750 jobs beginning as soon as 2010.
Recent news reports have referred to a lack of communications between MBI and United Auto Workers as causing a delay in hiring the former employees of Beaird Company. These reports are not accurate. UAW was not a party to the agreement between the City and MBI in regard to hiring of former employees of Beaird. In fact there is no basis for MBI to involve UAW in the start up of its Shreveport operations. In light of the fact that UAW has recently filed allegations of unfair labor practices against MBI with the National Labor Relations Board, all of which MBI emphatically denies, MBI will not comment further on the segments of the recent news reports relating to the UAW.
Lastly, MBI has stated in the past that prior to opening operations at the facility we must receive various permits from local and state authorities. That process has begun, even prior to the final paperwork with the City, but until it is completed, MBI cannot commence operations at the site. The length of time required for these permits is wholly up to local and state officials.
At the request of the City this lease agreement provides that when MBI begins to hire new employees to work in this facility, it will give preference to individuals who previously worked for Beaird Company. This hiring preference is the result of an agreement between the City and MBI. Beaird Company is not a party to this agreement. Beaird Company is a corporation that is unrelated to and totally separate from MBI. To MBI’s knowledge Beaird Company has gone out of business and has not operated at least since May 2008. Also the United Auto Workers Union is not a party to this agreement between the City and MBI.
MBI has been consistent in its position as it relates to the Shreveport facility in that MBI intends to maximize the site in terms of both opportunity and employment. To this end, we continue our efforts to ensure that joint venture partners work with our existing operations and bring maximum benefit to the community.
MBI remains engaged in serious and deliberate negotiations to locate a joint venture at the facility. While we are anxious to launch this venture we want to do so in a manner that allows us to maintain our history of never having to scale back our workforce or to layoff workers. For this reason, while our negotiations are continuing, we continue to evaluate other opportunities and will announce a venture only after due diligence has convinced us of the long term viability of the venture.
Within the short term, MBI plans to mobilize portions of its existing core business into the Shreveport manufacturing facility. This mobilization is anticipated to involve the transfer of a substantial number of MBI employees currently employed in other communities to the Shreveport area, as well as the hiring of new employees. The recent applications for employment acquired from former Beaird Company employees is part of the ongoing startup process. MBI is also in discussions with several companies who would like to use the facility for a period of 3-12 months to fabricate products. If successful in accomplishing agreements with these other companies, more jobs will be created. This would allow us to begin to get people to work while the facility is being upgraded.
As for as the bigger picture, MBI hopes to announce shortly the details of its discussions that are capable of having up to 500-750 jobs beginning as soon as 2010.
Recent news reports have referred to a lack of communications between MBI and United Auto Workers as causing a delay in hiring the former employees of Beaird Company. These reports are not accurate. UAW was not a party to the agreement between the City and MBI in regard to hiring of former employees of Beaird. In fact there is no basis for MBI to involve UAW in the start up of its Shreveport operations. In light of the fact that UAW has recently filed allegations of unfair labor practices against MBI with the National Labor Relations Board, all of which MBI emphatically denies, MBI will not comment further on the segments of the recent news reports relating to the UAW.
Lastly, MBI has stated in the past that prior to opening operations at the facility we must receive various permits from local and state authorities. That process has begun, even prior to the final paperwork with the City, but until it is completed, MBI cannot commence operations at the site. The length of time required for these permits is wholly up to local and state officials.
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