Workers at Hufcor Manufacturing are fighting for their jobs after Open Gate Capital announced they are moving production from Wisconsin to Mexico. The decision to shut down a facility that has been in Janesville, WI for over 100 years comes from a Los-Angeles based private equity firm with no connection or commitment to our community. Over 150 workers are expected to lose their jobs, many of whom have 20+ years of service.

President of IUE-CWA Local 84811 Tom Casey said, “We will do everything in our power to fight for these jobs. The closing of the Hufcor Janesville plant not only affects these employees but also affects our local suppliers and businesses in the surrounding area. We need to keep good union jobs in our community. OpenGate Capital is promoting a race to the bottom to exploit low wages in Mexico. It’s a heartless strategy to squeeze profits over people.”

“When corporations desert a community, the hurt ripples across every part of civic life,” observed Roger Bybee, a Milwaukee-based journalist who’s written for decades about plant closings and relocations from southeastern Wisconsin. “When General Motors closed in Janesville at the end of 2008, the impact on the community was devastating. Agencies responding to mental health crises saw an almost three-fold increase in calls. Now in 2021, the Janesville community must confront whether it can afford the loss of nearly 200 family-supporting jobs being shipped off to Mexico.”

“I have 4 young children and a wife that depend on me to keep the power on and the fridge full,” said Jesse Arndt, one of the impacted workers whose job is on the chopping block if OpenGate moves forward with their plans to outsource her job. “If they send our jobs to Mexico, OpenGate is impacting whole families, not just their employees to save a few bucks.”