Schumer acts to preserve Anheuser-Busch worker benefits

U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer was in Baldwinsville Monday to tour the Anheuser-Busch brewery.

As InBev prepares to take over operations of Anheuser-Busch, the senator urged InBev to continue full operations and maintain full benefits for current Anheuser-Busch plant employees.

The plant plays a critical economic role in Central New York, providing more than 800 jobs to the region. Currently, employees at the Baldwinsville Anheuser-Busch facility and across the country are safeguarded against unaffordable health care premium hikes due to their current contracts in the job. The InBev takeover could threaten these benefits, as well as the jobs of the current employees at the Baldwinsville facility and the 11 other breweries and Anheuser-Busch facilities across the country.

In an effort to protect the jobs, benefits and economy of Central New York and beyond, Sen. Schumer and several other US Senators penned a joint letter to InBev CEO Carlos Brito. The letter seeks to ensure employees at brewing plants across the nation keep their jobs and maintain full health and retirement benefits without unaffordable spikes in premiums.

“There are no two ways about it – we have to make sure that Anheuser- Busch employees in Upstate New York and beyond keep their jobs and full benefits. The Baldwinsville facility lies at the heart of the local economy and it should stay that way,” Schumer said. “I urge InBev to keep its pledge to continue operations at all 12 breweries across the country and to promise to keep affordable health benefits for its employees. The Anheuser-Busch employees are dedicated workers who deserve affordable health care and the benefits they have earned.”

InBev and Anheuser-Busch agreed to a $52 billion buyout in June. At the time of the takeover, InBev pledged to maintain operations at all 12 of Anheuser-Busch’s brewing facilities across the country but with InBev currently preparing to take over operations, many questions remain unanswered on their plans.

Since 1852, Anheuser-Busch has sustained a first-rate workforce dedicated to brewing, manufacturing and distributing a product of the highest caliber. The Anheuser-Busch breweries serve as central hubs of economic development where large and small communities rely on the jobs and continuing economic growth upheld by these facilities.

Anheuser-Busch currently employs nearly 31,000 people in 12 breweries in New York, Missouri, New Jersey, California, Texas, Ohio,Florida, New Hampshire, Virginia, Colorado, Georgia and additional plants and facilities throughout the country. In 2007, the Anheuser-Busch breweries operated at nearly 95 percent of manufacturing capacity. For production to remain at this level, Anheuser-Busch needs to maintain its high-quality workforce and provide them with health and retirement benefits. Any facility closures, job losses or benefit cuts would deal a crushing blow to communities coping with the current uncertainty in the global and domestic economies.

Sen. Schumer spearheaded an effort to send a joint letter from several U.S. Senators to InBev, urging them to both maintain operations and safeguard the health and retirement benefits for the employees at the 12 Anheuser-Busch breweries across the nation including the Baldwinsville facility in Central New York.

U.S. Senators Claire McCaskill, Robert Menendez, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Sherrod Brown, Jim Webb, Bill Nelson and Frank Lautenberg joined Sen. Schumer in sending the letter Monday Aug. 4. The Senators urged Inbev to use the current contract Anheuser-Busch maintains with its union employees as a model in its future plans. The current contract safeguards employees from unaffordable premium hikes. The Senators note that maintaining a strong healthcare and employee benefit program for each and every employee must be a top priority for InBev if it wants to continue to function at an optimal level.

“Anheuser-Busch has a strong relationship with its employees, built upon the principles of fairness, hard-work, and honesty," they wrote. "As InBev prepares to take over operations of Anheuser-Busch facilities across the United States, we urge you to carry on this tradition of cooperation and transparency.”
For a full copy of the letter, see below.

Mr. Carlos Brito
Chief Executive Officer InBev
Dear Mr. Brito:
In light of recent news of the sale of Anheuser-Busch to InBev, we write today to urge InBev to ensure full protection of Anheuser- Busch employee jobs and benefits.

Anheuser-Busch has a strong relationship with its employees, built upon the principles of fairness, hard-work, and honesty. As InBev prepares to take over operations of Anheuser-Busch facilities across the United States, we urge you to carry on this tradition of cooperation and transparency.

Anheuser-Busch currently employs nearly 31,000 people in 12 breweries in New York, Missouri, New Jersey, California,Texas, Ohio, Florida, New Hampshire, Virginia, Colorado, and Georgia and additional plants and distribution facilities throughout the country. Last year, these breweries operated at nearly 95 percent of manufacturing capacity. This is a testament to the dedication of Anheuser-Busch’s high-quality employees and the need to maintain operations at all of these facilities if production is to continue at an optimal level. This must come as no surprise, as you have assured Anheuser-Busch and its employees that all 12 breweries will be kept open.

As Senators representing employees of these breweries, we ask you to honor that commitment. Furthermore, the pressing matter of maintaining health and retirement benefits for Anheuser-Busch’s employees must be addressed.

The acquisition of Anheuser-Busch by InBev differs from InBev’s previous ventures in Canada and Europe due to the nature of the United States’ healthcare system. It is of the utmost importance that InBev take extra precautionary measures to assure workers that their healthcare and other employee benefits will remain intact. Maintaining a strong healthcare and employee benefit program for each and every employee must be a top priority for InBev.

Since 1852, Anheuser-Busch has sustained a first-rate workforce dedicated to brewing, manufacturing, and distributing a product of the highest caliber. In our respective states, the Anheuser-Busch breweries serve as central hubs of economic development. Large cities and small communities alike rely on the jobs and continuing economic activity that go hand in hand with these facilities. Any facility closures, job losses, or benefit cuts would deal a crushing blow to communities coping with the current uncertainty in the global and domestic economies.

With this in mind, we respectfully request that InBev take every precaution to maintain full operations at all Anheuser-Busch facilities, retain all jobs, and, at a minimum, offer comparable employee benefits.

Thank you for your consideration of this important matter.
Sincerely,
Senator Charles Schumer
Senator Claire McCaskill
Senator Robert Menendez
Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton
Senator Sherrod Brown
Senator Jim Webb
Senator Bill Nelson
Senator Frank Lautenberg

CATEGORY: General Business
TAGS: Baldwinsville, Beer, Syracuse, Anheuser-Busch, InBev
EDITION: Baldwinsville Messenger

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