A DAY IN NAFTAVILLE PART 1. How NAFTA & Globalizion affected a Midwest town

View the 1st part of this 4 part Documentary by strobx1 of Nafta and Globalization's effects on a Western Michigan Industrial City and it's struggle to "reinvent" itself. See the comparison of the Great Depression 1929 to the "Great Recession of 2009-2010". Most deals with Muskegon Mich, but this part tells about the closing of Eagle Ottawa Leather Company's Grand Haven Mich plant. From a high of 1400 people when strobx1 worked there for 27 years, it closed on October 31 2006. This was 3 years after strobx1 was forced out in 2003 because of the remaining "wet end" jobs were beyond his capability. EOLC processed a maximum of 50,000 hides a week or 200,000 a month. It was two shops in one. One was the "wet end" where raw cow hides were processed into leather using "Blue Chrome" and the other was the "Dry End" where I worked. The leather is used by GM,FORD, CHRYSLER, TOYOTA, HONDA and other auto manufacturers. EOLC did do "shoe leather" and "Sports Grip"(for Spalding)but ceased that by 1990. EOLC also made suede and "dog bone" which is the bottom of the hide after it's sliced in half thickness wise. The hides themselves smelled like a cattle truck and the "Leather Smell" is from the "aroma oil" finish which I used to make.(No I don't remember the formula!) The wage scale was from $10.92 to about $27.00 an hour. I had health insurance for $15.00 a month and I was able to buy $360.00 a month of prescriptions for $15.00 a month. No "National Health Care" was needed. This included "Delta Dental" FYI the average size of a cow hide is 6 feet wide, by 8 feet long to 2 feet wide at the neck and can have 30 or more square feet of area. The "soak" weight was about 100 to 150 pounds and ¾" thick. It takes about 4-6 hours to "burn" the hair off 3000 pounds of hides. EOLC first used "Paddle Wheels" using Sodium Sulpha Hydrate, Sulfuric Acid & lime. Total soak was about 24-36 hours. Later Canbar "Cement mixer" types replaced the paddle wheels. EOLC had 10 canbars which replace 30 paddle wheels. EOLC is still in Business being HQed in Rochester Mich/Auburn Hills. EOLC plants are "Master Craft" EOLC Cutting & finishing, Eagle Tanning- Waterloo Iowa, EOLC Mexico= Finishing- Juarez Mexico and has plants in South Africa, Europe & South America.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• documentories
• job loss
• recession
• Republican Party

[BubbaLee2]

awesome

[isawanangel2]

dont forget the dems had a nafta reform plan this time when you go to vote