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About 130 bakery workers who have been on strike since August are going back to making Stella D’oro cookies in the Bronx on Tuesday — but the return may be bittersweet.
Along with invitations to resume their old jobs, the workers also received notice that the plant’s owner planned to shut it down permanently in October. The owner, Brynwood Partners, a private investment firm in Greenwich, Conn., said that it could not afford to continue operating the bakery without significant concessions from its unionized work force.
The workers refused to accept the pay cuts and changes in benefits that the owners had demanded and began picketing 11 months ago. But last week, a federal administrative law judge ruled that Stella D’oro, which Brynwood bought from Kraft Foods in 2006, had to reinstate the striking workers and pay the wages they had lost since May 6.
Company officials said that they believed the judge’s decision was flawed and that they planned to appeal it. But in the meantime, they dismissed the replacement workers who had operated the bakery during the strike and prepared for the return of the original workers, who are members of Local 50 of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers.
In a statement released on Monday afternoon, Stella D’oro said the bakery was not profitable and would not be without significant changes to its existing wage scale, which paid $18 to $22 an hour to the most skilled workers.
“By refusing to compromise and insisting on maintaining a high labor cost structure, the union leadership has ensured that the jobs that they were trying to protect would eventually disappear from the Bronx forever,” the statement said.
The company said it planned to continue producing cookies, breakfast treats and breadsticks, but it did not indicate where. Outside the dormant bakery on Monday afternoon, Stella D’oro’s chief operating officer, Daniel J. Myers, said, “It’s certainly sad all around for everyone involved.”
(Source: NY Times)
No more streimel cookies?! What is life without streimel cookies?
Comment by Flatbush Bubby — July 7, 2009 @ 8:44 am
How many more American plants and businesses from all areas of the economy will close due to the pig-headed intransigence of union leaders who don’t see their world crumbling around them. For a per worker savings of a few hundred dollars a year these union leaders are losing these jobs altogether. Wake up AFL-CIO.
Comment by theprof1 — July 7, 2009 @ 8:45 am
Idk Flatbush Bubby, but at least those who are makpid on Pas Yisrael (which I’m not)will be happy theres one less nisayon
Comment by mbachur — July 7, 2009 @ 9:04 am
And the unions want to know why so many workers refuse to be members of unions!
Comment by nochamol — July 7, 2009 @ 9:05 am
I feel sorry if there are any non-union workers,
but for union workers, it will teach a lesson.
If there isn’t money, don’t push. If the MTA
could do that, the fares would not go up. Unions
are killing everyone. There was a need for it
at one time, but at this point, their demands are
ridiculous.
Comment by RBG — July 7, 2009 @ 9:07 am
Typical union stupidity
Comment by krunch — July 7, 2009 @ 9:37 am
don’t tease me, I need those Swiss Fudge Cookies!!!
Comment by mewhoze — July 7, 2009 @ 9:46 am
These cookies and snapple is all I ate when I was in out of town yeshive.
Comment by yehudah y d — July 7, 2009 @ 9:52 am
Those cookies were good. I noticed that all the frum stores had them on sale a few weeks ago, but they were overbaked probably by the strike breakers. I’m going to miss them.
Comment by yaakov doe — July 7, 2009 @ 9:53 am
unions killed another business. They are also responsible for the economic problems we have today
Comment by destro613 — July 7, 2009 @ 10:05 am
I agree with Flatbush Bubby. What are we going to do??
Comment by Anonymous — July 7, 2009 @ 10:15 am
we have to do something, this cookie factory comes before worrying about agriprocessors and where we will get our meat
Comment by shinbet — July 7, 2009 @ 10:19 am
Business that don’t cut costs, and can’t increase prices, will fail. Labor unions that want higher wages during a depression will destroy their companies. Wages fall during times of deflation. That’s is simple Economics 101, which some people don’t understand.
Comment by akuperma — July 7, 2009 @ 10:26 am
And Obama wants to make every company unionized, just comes to show where this country is heading. Small example….
Comment by iztheman — July 7, 2009 @ 10:33 am
i need those cookies
Comment by pookie — July 7, 2009 @ 10:35 am
#1. lol
Comment by veryinteresting — July 7, 2009 @ 11:12 am
Either the posts whining, “We want our cookies!” are tongue in cheek humor or the posters are bigger idiots than the union members who ran this firm out of business.
Comment by locknload — July 7, 2009 @ 11:18 am
By continue to push for more when there is less, the organized labor isn’t just shooting itself in the foot and losing the very jobs it wanted to protect. It is actually turning the whole economy toward emulating that despicable huge union that finally left the face of the Earth, yes, the Soviet one.
What are the powers to be thinking? Who said they are or know how to…..
Comment by sammygol — July 7, 2009 @ 11:28 am
Here in Toronto, we are in week 3 of a garbage/daycare/parks and rec programs/ferry boats(to centre island)/historical homes/canada day fun/etc. strike, due to stupidity and shotrsightedness of the unions, who should be glad they have a job at all! this is not the economic time to play these games!
Comment by smh1 — July 7, 2009 @ 12:11 pm
Which one is the ’streimel’ cookie?
Comment by charvona — July 7, 2009 @ 12:19 pm
I grew up on Stella D’oro cookies! (over 50 years ago, wow!)
I guess the shtreimel cookies are the round ones with the chocolate in the middle.
Comment by basmelech — July 7, 2009 @ 12:38 pm
Its just a matter of time before it becomes obvious to union members that the union serves no purpose and does more harm than good. They have destroyed many companies and will hurt many more.
Of course no one in the press will accurately document the number of job losses directly related to the stubborn unions unwilling to fairly negotiate.
Comment by ny100k — July 7, 2009 @ 12:42 pm
#20: Read #17. You’re missing the point, aren’t you?
Comment by locknload — July 7, 2009 @ 12:49 pm
I think the issue is Pas Yisrael. the union is demanding that the cookies be made available to all, even Pas Yisrael eaters. Thats why the comapny is closing.
Comment by Admorim — July 7, 2009 @ 1:59 pm
The union breakers have the recipe for the shtreimel cookies……Ah salvation. Ah salivation!
Comment by nishtgeshtoigen — July 7, 2009 @ 2:16 pm
#23 Got the point - the unions already shut down the auto industry - no chidush here - but cookies - they are important.
Comment by charvona — July 7, 2009 @ 2:20 pm
good by to all those chemical too (see ingredients)
Comment by elisha y — July 7, 2009 @ 2:55 pm
this is only the begining
YOU VOTED FOR OBAMA?
HIgher unemployment is what you voted for.
You voted fo Obama?
israel not a jewish country is what you voted for
You voted for obama?
His history showed him anti jewish
but you voted for obama
or livni
or olmert
or bibi who has a history of caving in and giving it away..
and we cant talk about the sins of israel
thats called lashon hara…
If we dont talk about it,
how can we rectify them.
Comment by DACON9 — July 7, 2009 @ 3:01 pm
#28, beautiful piece but WHAT IN THE WORLD DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH STELLA D’OR0 COOKIES??
Comment by sam rose — July 7, 2009 @ 3:51 pm
“how can we rectify them”
Vote Republican
Comment by jphone — July 7, 2009 @ 4:30 pm
Either the poster whining, “bigger idiots than the union leaders” has literalitis or the poster is a bigger tip than the union members who ran this firm out of business.
Comment by Anonymous — July 7, 2009 @ 5:50 pm
the streimelcookies are the swiss fudge cookies
Comment by ketzies — July 7, 2009 @ 7:08 pm
#29 - What? You can’t see Obama’s blatant anti-semitism at work in this? Can’t you see the clear connection between disengagement and our new cookie shortage? Watch Fox News and only vote for conservative rednecks, its the only way to protect your cookies’ future!
Comment by YaakovKuperman — July 7, 2009 @ 8:28 pm
Hey everyone, you didn’t read the last paragraph- they’ll still be producing the cookies.
Comment by chassidisheshechita — July 7, 2009 @ 9:59 pm
Well folks, there goes more jobs that were being “protected” by the Union. I wonder how all those workers feel now about their union? Probably not too good because shortly they WILL be like the bakery WAS doing, which is/was needing the dough!
Comment by mark levin — July 8, 2009 @ 2:03 am
דורה הולך ודורה בא
In the Yeshiva we called them Stale Dora. But that’s because it was an Out-of-Town Yeshiva. Maybe in NY they were fresher. I see from your posts that Obama is being blamed for this too.
Comment by NeveAliza — July 8, 2009 @ 8:37 am
Locknload, lighten up.
Any way, the company said that they will find a new location. Than means SHTRAMEL COOKIES FOR ALL!!! Yaay! I can’t eat them with out thinking of my in-laws. (Yes, that is a good thing)
Comment by just me — July 8, 2009 @ 8:39 am
The court rules that the company violated the rights of the union workers.
So people here blame the workers for standing up for their rights.
The current owners paid too much for the company when they bought it from Kraft. The stupidity of the owners is not the fault of the workers.
Comment by charliehall — July 8, 2009 @ 7:26 pm