Colgate Outsources From Indiana to Tennessee

Wages drop from $22/hour to $9.50
Number of jobs drop from 475 to 220
Union busted...
The Colgate-Palmolive Co. announced last week that it will build a toothpaste factory in Morristown, Tenn., as part of a cost-cutting strategy that includes closing a similar plant in Clarksville, Ind. The 475 employees at the Clark County facility learned in October the plant would stop production by Jan. 1, 2008, ending more than 80 years of Colgate manufacturing in Southern Indiana.

Rick Davis of New Albany, Ind., a 30-year veteran of the Clarksville plant, called the decision to move to Tennessee "sickening." Davis said he earns about $22 an hour, the average wage for a union employee. He said the move to Morristown was based on "corporate greed" and the company's desire to "get rid of unions." In a statement yesterday, Colgate said the move was based on the cost of land, the cost of preparing a site and unspecified operating costs.

Read more in the Louisville Courier Journal.

Remember: What's good for business and the consumer is usually bad for the worker.