IAM members in Newcomerstown, OH, who were left jobless when a fire destroyed Janesville Acoustics, are getting some much needed help from the IAM Disaster Relief Fund.
Nearly 100 full-time and probationary employees received $250 checks this week from District 54 Secretary-Treasurer Jerry Espy, who noted in a local newspaper article that the fund is supported by voluntary donations from IAM members around the country and not from IAM dues.
In addition to the relief checks, IAM representatives compiled names and resumes of displaced workers that will be circulated to IAM-represented employers and others in the area who may be hiring.
It remains unclear if the 95,000 square foot facility will reopen after a fast moving fire destroyed the facility on November 27. Meanwhile, some workers have returned to school and some will work at the company’s Norwalk, OH facility, where work was shifted after the blaze.
“While the company was able to keep the employees on the payroll until the end of the year and they are now eligible to collect unemployment insurance, the IAM will continue to support these members in every way we can,” said District 54 President T. Dean Wright, Jr. “Thanks to the assistance of the Grand Lodge and Director of Community and Membership Services Charlie Micallef, we were able to make the holidays a little brighter for them last year and start the New Year on a positive note.”
