Domino theory? Auto supplier Lear Corp. joins industry ranks in Chapter 11
Wake up and good morning. Well, it's official. U.S. auto parts maker Lear Corp. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Tuesday, a day after setting out plans to restructure its $3.6 billion debt burden under a proposed deal with creditors.
Not that a Chapter 11 filing helps any of the Tampa Bay area workers at Lear's facility at 5100 W Waters Ave. They assemble electronic components and systems for auto interiors, but have known long before Chrysler and GM opted for bankruptcy that their jobs are being eliminated locally. Lear's moving the the plant and most of the assembly line components to a new plant in Mexico.
(Show above in a photo taken outside the Tampa facility last fall are -- clockwise from top left -- machine operators Betsaida Valentin, Jean Muller, Nedra Banks and Elizabeth Rondon, maintenance tech Eric Franks and control tech and UAW Local 2405 chief Richard Neal. Photo courtesy of Selim Merchant.)
Lear's bankruptcy is a reminder that the extraordinary hits to the U.S. auto industry will not only be reflected in the Florida economy in shrinking numbers of auto dealerships. Florida does have auto supplier jobs, too, although they are dwindling quickly.
Lear now says its bankruptcy plan -- the largest in a string of failures of auto parts suppliers -- was supported by about 68 percent in principal amount of its secured lenders and more than 50 percent in principal amount of its bondholders, says Reuters.
"We intend to proceed on an expedited basis and expect to submit the plan to the Bankruptcy Court within 60 days," Lear Chief Executive Bob Rossiter (shown in photo) said in a statement. Here is Lear's press release. And here is Lear's letter, dated July 7, to its retirees.
Added Rossiter: "Our goal is to emerge from this process quickly and with an appropriate capital structure to support our long-term business objectives as a leading global competitor with the financial flexibility to build on our strengths and take advantage of future growth opportunities."
-- Robert Trigaux, Times Business Columnist
Wake up! Grab your coffee and start a new daily habit of checking the
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Robert Trigaux has worked as a St. Petersburg Times business columnist,
editor and reporter since 1991. He has covered business issues since the
late 1970s in Florida, Washington, D.C., London and New York. His 
Where was the Hillsborough Economic Development Department when Lear announced it was closing the plant? Why did it not save the jobs and keep the plant open? Where is the so-called “Tampa 100” (or whatever you call it)? I think Hillsborough County ought to shut down its Economic Development Department because it does not develop business. The economy develops business. The government bureaucrats brag when it brings in one business every couple years and hides when Hav-A Tampa and Lear and others shut down.
Posted by: Notsosmart | July 08, 2009 at 06:39 AM
Will a site like this for GM car and truck parts still be around?
Posted by: Felix Chesterfield | July 21, 2009 at 08:42 AM