Boonville Hostess Plant Closing
***UPDATE FRIDAY, 10:45 A.M.***Boonville’s mayor is confirming the Hostess plant will close at noon today. Julie Thacher said she received a call at about 6:00 this morning that the facility would shut its doors putting about 100 people out of work. Thacher said a Hostess outlet store located near the plant will close on Monday.***UPDATE FRIDAY, 9:59 A.M.A worker’s spouse at the Hostess facility in Boonville has said the plant is laying off its employees.The source said employees have been called to come in and pick up a paycheck and a packet. We have a crew headed to Boonville and will have more information as it comes in. ***UPDATE FRIDAY, 6:42 A.M.***IRVING, Texas (AP) – Hostess Brands says it is going out of business, closing plants that make Twinkies and Wonder Bread and laying off all of its 18,500 workers.The Irving, Texas, company says a nationwide worker strike crippled its ability to make and deliver its products at several locations.Hostess had warned employees that it would file a motion in U.S. Bankruptcy Court to unwind its business and sell assets if plant operations didn’t return to normal levels by Thursday evening.The privately held company filed for Chapter 11 protection in January, its second trip through bankruptcy court in less than a decade.***UPDATE FRIDAY, 6:28 A.M.***Hostess announced it is going out of business Friday morning. The immediate impact on the Boonville plant is unclear.***ORIGINAL STORY***Eighty workers at the Hostess plant in Boonville are watching developments at the corporate level and wondering if they could be out of a job in the next 24-to-36 hours.Hostess Brands, a national maker of breads and snack foods like Twinkies, filed for bankruptcy earlier this year. The company won the right to impose pay cuts. Now, thousands of union workers across the country are protesting those cuts.The company is expected to go to court Friday with an order to liquidate if too many workers choose to cross the picket line. However, workers are unhappy with the eight percent pay cut for year.Earlier this week, Hostess closed plants in Cincinnati, Seattle and St. Louis but more could close by the end of the week. About 18,000 employees, including the 80 at the Boonville plants, could be out of a job if the company decides to liquidate.The company’s leader says the company cannot afford all of the protestors.”The problem is we don’t have enough crossing those lines to maintain normal production and keep our customers in stock so we’re appealing to those still on the picket line to go back to work,” said Hostess CEO Gregory Rayburn.ABC 17 News tried to contact the worker’s union and the Boonville plant, but no one would comment on the situation.The plant in Boonville has not been part of the protest so far, but city officials say it would be a tough break for the city if Hostess cannot make a deal and is forced to shut down all of its plants.Officials say not only would it affect the economy in Boonville, but it will also affect the economy across Mid-Missouri.
