After 82 years of operations, the Hostess Brands are ceasing
operations and liquidating the company as of Friday, November 16th. This means no more Twinkies, Ho-Ho’s, Ding
Dongs, or Wonder Bread. The company has
requested permission to liquidate its assets and discontinue operations. This will potentially result in the loss of
some 18,500 jobs.
The company has issued a statement on its website explaining
why they feel these steps are necessary.
Below is a link:
After filing for bankruptcy for the second time in a decade,
the company has approached its workers requesting an 8% pay cut. The company’s cost structure, which includes
salary and pension expenses, is not allowing the company to maintain
profitability. Even though it is the
employees which would have to endure the pay cut, it is the unions that
negotiate with the company’s management.
Although the company was able to reach an agreement with one
of the largest unions, the Teamsters Union, they were unable to reach the same
agreement with the Bakery, Confectionary, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers
International Union. The union was
unwilling to accept the pay cut blaming managerial issues for the company’s
inability to compete. As a result of no
agreement being reached, the management of Hostess has decided to liquidate the
company in order to get the most value from its assets.
The company will be closing of 33 bakeries, 565 distribution
centers, approximately 5500 delivery routes and 570 bakery outlet stores across
the United States. While 18,500 Hostess
employees are expected to lose their jobs, the impact on the other businesses
and vendors which work with Hostess will be significant.
What do you know about labor unions? Under what conditions do you think it is
appropriate for management to ask employees to take a pay cut? Under what conditions do you think it is
appropriate for the unions to reject pay cuts?
What is your favorite Hostess snack and why?
Grace- I don't know anything about labor unions. But I would like to know about them sometime. It's appropiate for management to ask employees to take a pay cut when business is getting low or their going out of business, because the business would be lacking money. I think it's appropiate to reject pay cuts when everything is going well and the business is getting a lot of money. I don't like any Hostess snacks.
ReplyDeleteMckai- I have no idea what labor unions is but it doesn't sound fun. I would like to know. In this situation yes but if it wasn't and your boss just wnts more mony than no. If yor boss wants more money rejectit's up to you though. I don't like any of them.
ReplyDeleteCharlie- I have heard of labor unions but don't really know what they are. I think they were a little hard on the employees making them pay taxes. I think it is appropriate to reject pay cuts when a big company like Nike or Reebok is at a high point on selling and is making a lot of money. I like ding dongs :).
ReplyDeleteMadeline- I do not know much about labor unions either, but just like Grace said I would like to learn about them. I think that when a business is struggling, the management has a right to ask for a pay cut. I think this because when a business is struggling, it is normally because the business is not making enough money. So if your company does not make enough money, soon you will lose your job and the place will go out of business. It is appropriate for a union to reject a pay cut, if the company is doing very well and the management just wants more money. Also if the head of the business did not have to take a pay cut, but everybody else did. I have never had any of the hostess snacks, but my dad told me when he was little he loved the Yankee Dooddles and Devil Dogs
ReplyDelete-Sam-All I know about labor unions is that either the run by the government or an organization. They have a large influence on how much workers are being paid, their general well-being and the like. There are different labor unions for different jobs, for example, the firefighters union is separate from the policeman union. Also, Unions usually are regional or within the states boundaries. Some states, such as Idaho don’t have labor unions. And lastly, labor unions are only for people in the workforce, there are no CEO labor unions. The conditions that I would ask my workers for a pay cut is when either the company is in decline or is in debt. I would do this because there is no reason to have pay cuts when the company is already making profits. But if the company isn’t making profits than something needs to be fixed and one thing that might be a problem is what you are paying your employees too much. I think that the right circumstances for to deny a pay cut is when your company is making a lot of money and the company is making enough to sustain itself and make profits. My favorite Hostess snack is ding-dong and partly because it is the only Hostess snack I have ever had and also because I would think that Twinkies have to much filling, but ding-dongs have the perfect balance.
ReplyDeleteVictoria-the only thing that i know about labor unions is that is is something where the employees get together and form a union that helps protect them. I think yhat it is appropriate for them to cut the pay when the company is not doing well or is suffering from loss of money. i dont like any hostess snacks because they are very fattening and i just dont think they tast good.
ReplyDeleteHenry- I don't know a lot about labor unions, but I know that they form a "team" and stand up for what they want which is keeping their jobs. I think it is when the business or company is struggling to make a profit. I think it is appropriate when the company or businesses to reject them is when the company or business is doing well and making a profit. I don't like any of the Hostess snacks.
ReplyDeleteClaire- I don't know much about labor unions, but I know that it is an organization to represent the rights of employees. I think it is appropriate for management to ask employees to take a pay cut if the company is losing money. They should give employees the option to either take a pay cut, or face a lay off. I think it is appropriate for unions to reject pay cuts when the majority of the union members vote to reject the pay cut. I don't really like the Hostess snacks, but the Ding-Dongs are ok. The Twinkies are just gross because like Victoria said, they are very fattening.
ReplyDeleteKylee-I really don't know a lot about labor unions except that it is a group of people that work together. I think that the only time that it is appropriate for a business to ask the employees to take a pay cut is when the business is going through bankruptcy. I think that the unions should reject a pay cut when it seems to be an unfair amount. My favorite Hostess snack is the Ding-Dong but I don't ever get them because I think that they are too sweet.
ReplyDeleteEmily - i don't know anything about labor unions. I think it's fne if the company is going out of business. If the people who run the company ask for a lot of their employees salary, its not okay. I don't like any of the hostess snacks...
ReplyDeleteAustin- I dont realy know anything about labor unions. An appropriate way to ask an employee is to say that business is slow. I also think the management needs to take a pay cut. There are no conditions. They need to take a pay cut if they want to keep their jobs. If I could choose one I would choose ding dong. I chose this because I love chocolate. They are soft and delicious.
ReplyDeleteGraci- I don't know really anything about labor unions, but I would want to learn about them. To tell my employees about a pay cut in an appropriate way is our company is in in debt or if business isn't going a little slow because people aren't buying our products. An appropriate way to reject a pay cut is telling your boss that business is going well and we are getting enough money to pay everybody. I like ding dongs because I like chocolate, but sometimes their too sweet and I don't like them.
ReplyDeleteEmile-I have no idea what labor unions are but it could be something interesting to look into.its a common need people want more money for what they are working for.But the economy could go down due to the loss of jobs and goods for money to go around. cutting business for pay cuts is a big thing because prices are going up and the GPD is not being consumed. Ding dongs!!! chocolate with marshmallows so good!!!
ReplyDeleteRobert-What I know about labor unions would be that they were established to protect a workers rights but now they pay them high wages and benefits that some of the businesses can't even afford the workers. I think under the condition of fling bankruptcy it is right to cut a workers pay checks. I think that under the condition of their company doing fine would be a big reason to not cut a workers pay check. I don't really have a favorite hostess snack because I have not ever really had any before making me think that hostess is filing for bankruptcy because their food is low quality and fattening and also because not many people bother to eat them because the people that have eaten them tell the people that have not eaten them that they are not even worth the money.
ReplyDeleteBen- im pretty sure labor unions are company's that like protect there employes and give them good pay. maybe its something that is like going out of business wait no thats bankruptcy. i'm going to search what it is tonight
ReplyDeleteI know quite a bit from liam he said labor unions is an organized group of workers, often in a trade or profession, formed to protect and further their rights and interests.
ReplyDeletethts jacks
ReplyDeleteMargaret-I dont know anything about labor unions but i want to know about them.if managment is asking the unions to take a pay cut then the managment should be taking big paycuts too, and making sure that the companay is not wasting money. The unions should regect the paycuts if managment doent take the paycuts and fix all the wasted money. My favorite hostist snack is twinkies because i love the filling and the cake batter on the outside. Also it is very filling.
ReplyDeleteElizabeth- I dont know alot about the labor unions but this is one thning they were not selling alot plus they're so unhealthy for people. The proper time to ask for some empollieys to pay-cut is when they business is not "booming". Also if they are having to pay lots of taxes and not get any support from it. The proper time to reject pay cuts is when your end of the market is not going the way you want it to which meens if your not getting alot of money you in some chases have to shut down. I kind of like Ding-Dongs because they're chocolate goodness mixed with extra hevan.
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