Congressional, Labor Leaders Join USW Calling on Cooper to Commit in Findlay

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Findlay, OH. October 27, 2008: The United Steelworkers (USW) today said that U.S. Rep. Phil Hare (D - IL), American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) International President Gerald W. McEntee, Ohio AFL-CIO President Joe Rugola and others will join members of Local 207L tomorrow to call on Cooper Tire and Rubber Company to commit to continue making tires here and discuss the many differences between Sens. Barack Obama and John McCain on trade policies that cost millions of manufacturing jobs throughout the country.

Last week, Cooper stated that it would be conducting a capacity study and the likely result would be them closing one of its four U.S. plants.

A special news conference has been scheduled on Tuesday for 11 a.m. at USW Local 207L. USW members whose jobs are on the line at the Cooper plant will participate in the event with their local union president, Rod Nelson, and Mike Carroll, a member of USW Local 169 in Mansfield, Ohio who is running for congress in Ohio's fourth district will join Hare, McEntee and Rugola. The conference will also feature members of UNITE HERE from Findlay and other area unions who will speak about the impact of trade policies on their jobs.

Congressman Hare is a former clothing factory worker and union shop steward. He is a member of the House Education and Labor Committee and one of the leaders of the House Trade Working Group, an organization dedicated to reforming our broken trade policies. He has worked with Sen. Obama to protect jobs in Illinois, including winning a case against China for tire dumping in August.