ICYMI: Ashley Hinson’s Tariffs Are Killing Jobs at Whirlpool’s Amana Plant
Reuters: “Tariffs Have Not Halted Job Losses in Iowa”
Reuters: “Tariffs Have Raised Whirlpool’s Costs for Steel and Imported Components While Demand Tied to a Weak Housing Market Has Softened”
DES MOINES – In case you missed it, the Ashley Hinson-backed, chaotic tariffs are killing 288 Iowa jobs at Whirlpool’s Amana plant, according to a new Reuters report.
Hinson has voted four times to keep the tariffs in place, despite Iowans calling them a “growing disaster.” Now, as economic conditions worsen and inflation “surges to [a] three-year high,” Iowa workers are feeling “betrayed” by Hinson’s empty promises and misguided support for tariffs that failed to is now costing Iowans their jobs.
“Ashley Hinson is driving Iowa’s economy off a cliff with her chaotic tariffs that are crushing small businesses, sending grocery prices skyrocketing, and costing Iowans their jobs,” said Iowa Democratic Party spokesperson Drew Myers. “Iowans are tired of dealing with the consequences of Hinson’s failing record, while her multimillion-dollar fortune grows, making her more and more out of touch with everyday Iowans.”
Reuters: Trump’s tariffs aren’t saving jobs at Whirlpool’s Iowa refrigerator plant
- Whirlpool was among those expected to benefit from the tariffs […]
- Yet only one assembly line now runs at the plant, down from five that once turned out nearly a million units a year. Another 288 workers are set to lose their jobs in July.
- But tariffs have not halted the job losses in Iowa or the decline in Whirlpool’s stock, now at its lowest since the 2007-2009 financial crisis.
- Tariffs have raised Whirlpool’s costs for steel and imported components while demand tied to a weak housing market has softened.
- Many of the remaining Whirlpool workers in Amana are despondent. The plant a few years ago churned out more than 900,000 refrigerators a year, according to the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, the union which represents workers. It now makes fewer than 250,000.
- Aaron Southard said he is a Republican and voted for Trump in the last election. But he said he is looking to support Democrats in the midterms. “We thought we’d be getting our jobs back,” said the 44-year-old auto press operator. “I feel betrayed – they’re out there stomping and saying Make America Great and bring jobs back.”
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