By Doug Cunningham

The United Steelworkers (USW) are on strike against Goodyear Tire. The strike started today, Thursday October 5 at 1 pm. EDT. The USW says Goodyear left the union with no option but to strike. USW Executive Vice-President Ron Hoover said in a steelworkers press release that the union “cannot allow additional plant closures after the sacrifices we made three years ago to help this company survive.”

The steelworkers agreed in 2003 to the closure of the Huntsville, Alabama Goodyear plant and also agreed to some concessions on wages, pensions and health care. The union says it worked very hard with the company to help Goodyear through a difficult situation, but Goodyear has rebounded and the USW says the company seems to only want to take away more from its workers.

The USW says the strike will impact all 16 Goodyear plants in the U.S. and Canada. The union represents 15,000 Goodyear workers.

This strike is a battle to prevent plant closings and the devastation that brings not only to the workers but to entire communities.