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Twinkies Return, Hostess Unions Won't


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2013 Apr 26, 1:32am   11,313 views  67 comments

by zzyzzx   ➕follow (5)   💰tip   ignore  

http://gma.yahoo.com/twinkies-return-hostess-unions-wont-030833930--abc-news-money.html

Twinkies Return, Hostess Unions Won't

he bankrupt assets of Hostess Brands, Inc., the company responsible for Twinkies, Ho Ho's, Sno Balls and Ding Dongs, are being put back to work by a buyout firm. What's not being put back to work are the former Hostess unionized employees.

The unionized workers had been on strike when the company folded late last year.

The company had imposed a contract that would cut its 19,000 workers' wages — 15,000 of whom belonged to the workers from the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers & Grain Millers International Union (BCTGM) — by 8 percent. (The Teamsters was Hostess' largest union, followed by BCTGM.) The contract would have also cut benefits by 27 to 32 percent.

Hostess filed for Chapter 11 in January 2012. In November 2012, the company announced it would be shutting its doors for good. By that time, it had lost about $1.1 billion, largely due to bankruptcy filings.

But last month Apollo Global Management, LLC, and Metropoulos & Co., which owns Pabst Blue Ribbon and Vlasic pickles, bought the 83-year-old company for $410 million, renaming it Hostess Brands LLC. It is planning to re-open four bakeries over the next two and a half months, in Columbus, Ga.; Emporia, Kan.; Schiller Park, Ill.; and Indianapolis. It is also contemplating a fifth in Los Angeles.

According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, C. Dean Metropoulos, the company's chief executive, said that between now and September, he plans to inject $60 million in capital investments into the plants, and hopes to hire at least 1,500 workers.

But those workers won't be unionized.

"It appears that they are discharging the union contract in bankruptcy," said Matthew A. Kaufman, a labor attorney in Los Angeles who is not affiliated with the case.

While Metropoulos did not respond to interview requests from ABC News, he told the Journal that he does "not expect to be involved in the union going forward."

A spokesman for the Teamsters declined to comment. But in a November 2012 statement the Teamsters noted that the "BCTGM's leaders are putting Teamster members in a horrible position – asking them to support a strike that will put them out of a job when they haven't even asked all their members to go on strike."

A spokeswoman for the BCTGM did not return phone calls to ABC News. In a March statement, BTCGM president David Durkee said, "We share the enthusiasm, energy and passions exhibited by new ownership, and believe our highly-motivated and skilled workforce will serve as indispensable partners in the seamless re-opening of factories," he said.

But, according to the Journal, Metropoulos and his son, Daren, felt confident that they would be able to hire non-union employees near the new plants.

"We're trying to find the most qualified people in these local markets to come work for the company," Daren Metropoulos told the Journal.

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41   Homeboy   2013 Jul 17, 5:15am  

errc says

Well then, maybe you could clear things up for me a bit. Explain to me, scientifically, how eating a ribeye steak would make someone fat.

You don't understand how the human body stores excess calories as fat? Wow, pretty remedial, but here you go:

http://www.livestrong.com/article/416664-how-does-your-body-store-excess-calories/

Steak contains calories, just like every other kind of food. They are not "magic" calories.

42   anonymous   2013 Jul 17, 5:35am  

Homeboy says

errc says

Well then, maybe you could clear things up for me a bit. Explain to me, scientifically, how eating a ribeye steak would make someone fat.

You don't understand how the human body stores excess calories as fat? Wow, pretty remedial, but here you go:

http://www.livestrong.com/article/416664-how-does-your-body-store-excess-calories/

Steak contains calories, just like every other kind of food. They are not "magic" calories.

Nobody except for you, labeled them as "magic" calories.

You also labeled them as "excess" calories

I had asked that you explain to me how eating a ribeye would make someone fat (scientifically).

You responded emotionally with some nonsense and a livestrong link lol.

Care to try again?

43   Goran_K   2013 Jul 17, 5:40am  

Umm because your average 16oz ribeye is nearly 1600 calories, half of which is fat?

That's almost your entire daily allotment of calories for the average sized person.

44   edvard2   2013 Jul 17, 5:42am  

indigenous says

Torta con caca de nina

Well, I'm pretty sure it ain't baby poop.

45   anonymous   2013 Jul 17, 5:45am  

Steak contains calories, just like every other kind of food. They are not "magic" calories.

This is also false. Steak doesn't "contain calories".

Ribeye is made up of fat and protein.

calories is somewhat of a misnomer. Its not an item contained within food, rather, a unit of measurement.

And when referring to food, we are technically talking about kilocalories, when we say calorie

46   Tenpoundbass   2013 Jul 17, 5:47am  

The most weight I ever lost was by not eating anything white or dyed.

Which for the most part meant lots of meat and lots of broccoli.

47   anonymous   2013 Jul 17, 5:49am  

Goran_K says

Umm because your average 16oz ribeye is nearly 1600 calories, half of which is fat?

That's almost your entire daily allotment of calories for the average sized person.

You seem to be operating under 19th century outdated information that assumed that all calories are created equal, which we now know to be false. Gotta love science.

If you ate nothing but ribeye steaks for a weak, and double your usual caloric intake, you would most certainly lose (fat) weight.

48   Goran_K   2013 Jul 17, 5:50am  

Only time I ever gained weight above what was considered healthy is when I got addicted to chocolate milk shakes back in college. I probably gained a good 15 pounds over my natural body weight.

But for the most part I've always been fairly thin, size 32 waist.

49   edvard2   2013 Jul 17, 5:52am  

I've always been pretty thin but when I got my first office job I gained about 10 pounds. So I had to do like all the other cubicle workers: go to the gym. Anyway, my very old fashioned notion is to eat when you're hungry and exercise.

50   Goran_K   2013 Jul 17, 5:57am  

Yeah I only eat when I'm hungry too.

Another thing I do is I tend to eat heavier in the morning, and like a bird for dinner (except when I'm out with friends or dinner party).

51   Goran_K   2013 Jul 17, 6:13am  

errc says

If you ate nothing but ribeye steaks for a weak, and double your usual caloric intake, you would most certainly lose (fat) weight.

I don't believe this statement. It sounds ridiculous.

52   Tenpoundbass   2013 Jul 17, 6:34am  

Goran_K says

It sounds ridiculous.

Well it's true, carbs are the fat builders.

Cut wheat, sugar, rice, and potatoes out of your diet and the pounds will fall off. The only problem with that is, the pounds fly back on when you go back to your normal routine, almost as fast as they melted away.

53   Goran_K   2013 Jul 18, 1:28am  

I never got the "carb cutting" diets. Carbs are a necessary part of a diet, and the only way you get fat is if you abuse them.

It's all about moderation. If I eat 300 calories worth of Twinkies, as part of a 2,000 calorie diet, and I burn 2,200 calories in a day (not really hard), I'm still going to lose weight. Diet and health is all about balance.

I've been a waist size 32 since 1998, have never had high blood pressure, and have excellent HDC/LDC numbers. I don't even exercise that much, basically walking for an hour 3 times a week.

54   Tenpoundbass   2013 Jul 18, 1:42am  

Goran_K says

Carbs are a necessary part of a diet, and the only way you get fat is if you abuse them.

You get good carbs from Veggies and Fruits. I still eat those, even though the Nazi carb diets say not to. I also drink unsweetened Ice tea, hot green tea and coffee, other Nazi no-nos.

I call my Diet the "Liberal Diet", the daily affirmation is... "If it's White, it ain't right!"
don't eat it.

55   Goran_K   2013 Jul 18, 1:45am  

Yeah. I'm big on Kale. Taste delicious, and I even throw a handful of it into my morning smoothie. I get all my carbs, no need for cutting. Kale also has proven anti-cancer properties. Love it.

56   Goran_K   2013 Jul 18, 2:04am  

CaptainShuddup says

I call my Diet the "Liberal Diet", the daily affirmation is... "If it's White, it ain't right!"

don't eat it.

Heeeeey ooooooo.

57   mell   2013 Jul 18, 2:09am  

Goran_K says

CaptainShuddup says

I call my Diet the "Liberal Diet", the daily affirmation is... "If it's White, it ain't right!"

don't eat it.

Heeeeey ooooooo.

That was a good one ;)

58   Goran_K   2013 Jul 18, 2:14am  

Captain, along with Apocalypse provide some daily gems that I appreciate, and treasure.

60   indigenous   2013 Jul 19, 7:13am  

zzyzzx says

That there is a beautiful thing and how it should work, can you imagine what that chart would look like for various government agencies?

61   zzyzzx   2014 Aug 22, 12:29am  

Looks like the Unions did return, for a short period of time, and with the expected results:

http://news.yahoo.com/hostess-closing-bakery-created-twinkie-154955144.html

Hostess closing bakery that created the Twinkie

CHICAGO (AP) -- Hostess Brands plans to close the suburban Chicago bakery where the Twinkie was invented in 1930, cutting 400 jobs and shuttering a piece of American baking history.

The company said Wednesday it plans to close the Schiller Park bakery in October.

According to the Chicago Sun-Times (http://bit.ly/1kXZNLh ), Hostess Brands CEO Bill Toler said the company is closing the plant as it tries to improve efficiency.

"While the old Hostess company was in bankruptcy, many competitors took over the shelves and are tenaciously defending their business and thus we must be highly efficient and technologically advanced to compete," he said.

Hostess filed for bankruptcy in 2012.

The plant's employees were stunned by the news, Donald Woods said. He is president of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco workers and Grain Millers International Union Local 1.

"They were working like 12 hours, six days a week, and they were looking for this plant to be a part of their future," he said, adding that the workers voted in May to rejoin the union. They had been told the company planned to keep the plant open long term, he said.

The bakery had just reopened a little over a year ago as Twinkies returned to store shelves after Hostess' bankruptcy.

The spongy, cream-filled snack cake was invented in Schiller Park in 1930 by a bakery manager looking for uses for idle shortcake pans.

62   Tenpoundbass   2014 Aug 22, 12:33am  

Goran_K says

I'm just glad Hostess cakes are back.

CaptainShuddup says

Don't forget to flush and light a match

63   HydroCabron   2014 Aug 22, 12:59am  

1) $87 million in needless costs due to management missteps/corruption
2) $36 million in gratuitous management and CEO compensation
3) $40 million in unnecessary labor costs due to union rules

The answer is clear: the unions ran the company into the ground!

64   zzyzzx   2014 Aug 22, 1:21am  

PCGyver says

11 factories at 50% capacity.

and the execs had no say in this?

Or did they purposely run the company like this so it would fail?

Probably due to union contract.

65   tatupu70   2014 Aug 22, 1:27am  

zzyzzx says

Probably due to union contract.

You crack me up. Do you really believe what you're posting?

66   HydroCabron   2014 Aug 22, 1:32am  

Does Hostess have a voluntary market share? Are there people who choose of their own free will to consume Hostess products?

I once bit into a Twinkie - did not finish.

Is there a market other than Gitmo and other U.S. conservative/small-gummint torture-and-beating installations?

It might be nice to have Hostess products to bite down on while being waterboarded, provided you spit them out afterwards.

67   MisdemeanorRebel   2014 Aug 22, 2:44am  

YAY! Less wages and benefits = more prosperity!

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