Hostess

[cla]

Not just twinkies and chocodiles, but wonderbread and everything dolly madison.

My uncle just went to rehab, kicked a drug habbit and got his life on track. He got a job at a Hostess bakery in northern utah. This was three weeks ago. Damn.

Irving, TX – November 16, 2012 –Hostess Brands Inc. today announced that it is winding down operations and has filed a motion with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court seeking permission to close its business and sell its assets, including its iconic brands and facilities. Bakery operations have been suspended at all plants. Delivery of products will continue and Hostess Brands retail stores will remain open for several days in order to sell already-baked products.

The Board of Directors authorized the wind down of Hostess Brands to preserve and maximize the value of the estate after one of the Company’s largest unions, the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union (BCTGM), initiated a nationwide strike that crippled the Company’s ability to produce and deliver products at multiple facilities.

On Nov. 12, Hostess Brands permanently closed three plants as a result of the work stoppage. On Nov. 14, the Company announced it would be forced to liquidate if sufficient employees did not return to work to restore normal operations by 5 p.m., EST p.m., Nov. 15. The Company determined on the night of Nov. 15 that an insufficient number of employees had returned to work to enable the restoration of normal operations.

The BCTGM in September rejected a last, best and final offer from Hostess Brands designed to lower costs so that the Company could attract new financing and emerge from Chapter 11. Hostess Brands then received Court authority on Oct. 3 to unilaterally impose changes to the BCTGM’s collective bargaining agreements.

Hostess Brands is unprofitable under its current cost structure, much of which is determined by union wages and pension costs. The offer to the BCTGM included wage, benefit and work rule concessions but also gave Hostess Brands’ 12 unions a 25 percent ownership stake in the company, representation on its Board of Directors and $100 million in reorganized Hostess Brands’ debt.

“We deeply regret the necessity of today’s decision, but we do not have the financial resources to weather an extended nationwide strike,” said Gregory F. Rayburn, chief executive officer. “Hostess Brands will move promptly to lay off most of its 18,500-member workforce and focus on selling its assets to the highest bidders.”

In addition to dozens of baking and distribution facilities around the country, Hostess Brands will sell its popular brands, including Hostess®, Drakes® and Dolly Madison®, which make iconic cake products such as Twinkies®, CupCakes, Ding Dongs®, Ho Ho’s®, Sno Balls® and Donettes®. Bread brands to be sold include Wonder®, Nature’s Pride ®, Merita®, Home Pride®, Butternut®, and Beefsteak®, among others.

The wind down means the closure of 33 bakeries, 565 distribution centers, approximately 5,500 delivery routes and 570 bakery outlet stores throughout the United States.

The Company said its debtor-in-possession lenders have agreed to allow the Company to continue to have access to the $75 million financing facility put in place at the start of the bankruptcy cases to fund the sale and wind down process, subject to U.S. Bankruptcy Court approval.

The Company’s motion asks the Court for authority to continue to pay employees whose services are required during the wind-down period.

For employees whose jobs will be eliminated, additional information can be found at hostessbrands.info . The website also contains information for customers and vendors. Most employees who lose their jobs should be eligible for government-provided unemployment benefits.

Categories: Lifestyle, food

Tags: Hostess

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[RobbieBensonFan]

Cliff Notes:

1) Union went on strike

2) Management said if you remain on strike we will liquidate the company

3) Union remained on strike, management liquidated company

4) Management walks away with huge check

5) Union dissolved, made their point, now its members are unemployed and broke

[WillieMcFML]

everyone is saying twinkies and ding dongs are gone forever but a lot of the most popular items will be bought and sold by another company

probably won't help your uncle though

[Dan Druff]

Cliff Notes:

1) Union went on strike

2) Management said if you remain on strike we will liquidate the company

3) Union remained on strike, management liquidated company

4) Management walks away with huge check

5) Union dissolved, made their point, now its members are unemployed and broke

bottomset likes to post extreme right-wing opinions, often likely intentionally exaggerated for comic effect.

However, the above is actually a pretty damn good summary of what happened.

Most unions are a corrupt, antiquated mess, and are really hurting the ability for American companies to survive.

Remember in 2003 when big box stores were crushing supermarkets, and the supermarkets had to somewhat cut back the amount they were contributing to the health benefits for employees? The unions freaked out and started striking, completely ignoring that most of their senior employees were grossly overpaid in the first place, and it just wasn't realistic to continue providing such high benefits and salaries for basically unskilled labor.

I am no corporate apologist and am very willing to call out corporate corruption and abuse, but unions are even worse than corporations when it comes to corruption and manipulation.

[Indyrick]

The 5,000 cost the 13,000 that agreed to the cuts their jobs. Well done

[shortbuspoker]

Cliff Notes:

1) Union went on strike

2) Management said if you remain on strike we will liquidate the company

3) Union remained on strike, management liquidated company

4) Management walks away with huge check

5) Union dissolved, made their point, now its members are unemployed and broke

bottomset likes to post extreme right-wing opinions, often likely intentionally exaggerated for comic effect.

However, the above is actually a pretty damn good summary of what happened.

Most unions are a corrupt, antiquated mess, and are really hurting the ability for American companies to survive.

Remember in 2003 when big box stores were crushing supermarkets, and the supermarkets had to somewhat cut back the amount they were contributing to the health benefits for employees? The unions freaked out and started striking, completely ignoring that most of their senior employees were grossly overpaid in the first place, and that it just wasn't realistic to continue providing such high benefits and salaries for basically unskilled labor.

I am no corporate apologist and am very willing to call out corporate corruption and abuse, but unions are even worse than corporations when it comes to corruption and manipulation.

I'm sure the recipes and the brands will bring in some money when sold, but who's to say that they higher ups get rich or barely make up what they owe their bankruptcy creditors. I do agree though that this is a prime example of a union putting their agenda ahead of the welfare of its members.

[Bootsy Collins]

Dolly Madison will be making the Twinkies and Ding Dongs. They have brought back stuff that Hostess stopped making.

[NaturalBornHustler]

bottomset likes to post extreme right-wing opinions, often likely intentionally exaggerated for comic effect.

However, the above is actually a pretty damn good summary of what happened.

Most unions are a corrupt, antiquated mess, and are really hurting the ability for American companies to survive.

Remember in 2003 when big box stores were crushing supermarkets, and the supermarkets had to somewhat cut back the amount they were contributing to the health benefits for employees? The unions freaked out and started striking, completely ignoring that most of their senior employees were grossly overpaid in the first place, and that it just wasn't realistic to continue providing such high benefits and salaries for basically unskilled labor.

I am no corporate apologist and am very willing to call out corporate corruption and abuse, but unions are even worse than corporations when it comes to corruption and manipulation.

I'm sure the recipes and the brands will bring in some money when sold, but who's to say that they higher ups get rich or barely make up what they owe their bankruptcy creditors. I do agree though that this is a prime example of a union putting their agenda ahead of the welfare of its members.

If they had a buyer for these extremely valuable assets they wouldn't need to liquidate or explore bankruptcy.

[4Dragons]

In before the Obama bailout.

[SrslySirius]

I bought a few dozen boxes of Hostess cakes today, including Twinkies. I know these things last for ages. Wonder if they might be worth much some day?

[Dan Druff]

I bought a few dozen boxes of Hostess cakes today, including Twinkies. I know these things last for ages. Wonder if they might be worth much some day?

In 2009, an Army colonel ate a 40-year-old pound cake:



I wonder what is the oldest food (I'm not talking about wine -- I'm talking about food) that still exists today, and I wonder what the oldest EDIBLE food is.

[BeerAndPoker]

Like others have said the biggest asset the company probably has is their recipes or any copyrights they have to certain products that they can just sell off to a big company such as Nabisco and get paid well perhaps even collecting royalties on sales of those items forever.

They might not of tried to liquidate these yet in hopes to keep the company together as it was going on but now are finally exploring those options.

[vegas1369]

Cliff Notes:

1) Union went on strike

2) Management said if you remain on strike we will liquidate the company

3) Union remained on strike, management liquidated company

4) Management walks away with huge check

5) Union dissolved, made their point, now its members are unemployed and broke

You might not believe this, but I agree with this from top to bottom. Hostess made a very fair offer to these dickbags, but instead of taking a pay cut they would rather their members be unemployed. Just disgusting.

[Gordman]

In before the Obama bailout.

Not gonna happen.

However I hear a rumor that Obama said he's gonna impliment "Twinkiecare" ... and states are to set up Twinkie exchanges.

[cla]

I bought a few dozen boxes of Hostess cakes today, including Twinkies. I know these things last for ages. Wonder if they might be worth much some day?

In 2009, an Army colonel ate a 40-year-old pound cake:



I wonder what is the oldest food (I'm not talking about wine -- I'm talking about food) that still exists today, and I wonder what the oldest EDIBLE food is.

Century eggs?

http://www.odditycentral.com/pics/ce...u-eat-one.html

[4Dragons]

In before the Obama bailout.

Not gonna happen.

However I hear a rumor that Obama said he's gonna impliment "Twinkiecare" ... and states are to set up Twinkie exchanges.

In before sugar credits?

[Dan Druff]

In 2009, an Army colonel ate a 40-year-old pound cake:



I wonder what is the oldest food (I'm not talking about wine -- I'm talking about food) that still exists today, and I wonder what the oldest EDIBLE food is.

Century eggs?

http://www.odditycentral.com/pics/ce...u-eat-one.html

These eggs seem to be just a few weeks or months old, rather than 100 years.

[Fergie72]

Cliff Notes:

1) Union went on strike

2) Management said if you remain on strike we will liquidate the company

3) Union remained on strike, management liquidated company

4) Management walks away with huge check

5) Union dissolved, made their point, now its members are unemployed and broke

bottomset likes to post extreme right-wing opinions, often likely intentionally exaggerated for comic effect.

However, the above is actually a pretty damn good summary of what happened.

Most unions are a corrupt, antiquated mess, and are really hurting the ability for American companies to survive.

Remember in 2003 when big box stores were crushing supermarkets, and the supermarkets had to somewhat cut back the amount they were contributing to the health benefits for employees? The unions freaked out and started striking, completely ignoring that most of their senior employees were grossly overpaid in the first place, and it just wasn't realistic to continue providing such high benefits and salaries for basically unskilled labor.

I am no corporate apologist and am very willing to call out corporate corruption and abuse, but unions are even worse than corporations when it comes to corruption and manipulation.

Agreed. I have been contemplating dropping out of the National Association of Letter Carriers for a while now. I havent done it yet because our branch president is a good friend of mine who has recently taken over the position, also I do believe management would rape us without them. Last months union newsletter though was the last straw. It basically said if you do not vote Democrat you will lose your job! I am not exaggerating either, it may as well have been written by the DNC.

They make it a huge pain in the ass to drop out too. You have to fill out a bunch of paperwork and submit it to the Washington DC branch within a one week window of the date that you joined. You must send it certified mail with a return receipt requested and present a copy of it to your local branch. If you do all of this this correctly they might let you out. One coworker of mine did all of this last year and they never processed it, he has no recourse but to repeat the process again this year and hope for the best.

[Ricky]

I wonder what is the oldest food (I'm not talking about wine -- I'm talking about food) that still exists today, and I wonder what the oldest EDIBLE food is.

Pretty sure I saw an Egyptian historian on the history channel eat some honey out of pottery sealed with wax....found in a Pharaoh's tomb. Thousands of years old is my guess. Some freezer burned woolly mammoth maybe.

[NaturalBornHustler]

bottomset likes to post extreme right-wing opinions, often likely intentionally exaggerated for comic effect.

However, the above is actually a pretty damn good summary of what happened.

Most unions are a corrupt, antiquated mess, and are really hurting the ability for American companies to survive.

Remember in 2003 when big box stores were crushing supermarkets, and the supermarkets had to somewhat cut back the amount they were contributing to the health benefits for employees? The unions freaked out and started striking, completely ignoring that most of their senior employees were grossly overpaid in the first place, and it just wasn't realistic to continue providing such high benefits and salaries for basically unskilled labor.

I am no corporate apologist and am very willing to call out corporate corruption and abuse, but unions are even worse than corporations when it comes to corruption and manipulation.

Agreed. I have been contemplating dropping out of the National Association of Letter Carriers for a while now. I havent done it yet because our branch president is a good friend of mine who has recently taken over the position, also I do believe management would rape us without them. Last months union newsletter though was the last straw. It basically said if you do not vote Democrat you will lose your job! I am not exaggerating either, it may as well have been written by the DNC.

They make it a huge pain in the ass to drop out too. You have to fill out a bunch of paperwork and submit it to the Washington DC branch within a one week window of the date that you joined. You must send it certified mail with a return receipt requested and present a copy of it to your local branch. If you do all of this this correctly they might let you out. One coworker of mine did all of this last year and they never processed it, he has no recourse but to repeat the process again this year and hope for the best.

What do you mean "let you out".

Why can't you just tell them to fuck off?