Federal bankruptcy judge: Walter Energy can reject union deals, move to sell
A federal bankruptcy judge ruled against a motion to block $2 million in retention bonuses for Walter Energy executives Monday, and is also allowing the company to terminate the collective bargaining agreements it held with two unions — United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) and United Steelworkers (USW) — as well as retiree benefits. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Tamara O. Mitchell in Birmingham found Walter Energy’s assets are eligible to be sold without the liabilities associated with union benefits. “This court finds that maintaining the coal operations as a going concern, keeping the mines open, offering future job opportunities and continuing to be a productive member of the business community all require this Court to overrule” the objections,” Mitchell wrote in an opinion filed Monday after two days of hearings. After her order, UMWA International President Cecil E. Roberts responded in a statement Tuesday, “The decision announced today by Judge Tamara O. Mitchell of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Birmingham rejecting our collective bargaining agreement with Walter Energy and wiping out Walter’s obligation to pay retiree health care and pension benefits is extremely disappointing but not surprising.” Roberts continued, “The law is stacked against workers in American bankruptcy courts. A lifetime of hard work and dedication means nothing to the courts. The life or death decisions vulnerable senior citizens will now be forced to make mean nothing to the courts. Apparently all that matters is that executives get bonuses and Wall Street raiders get paid. “The fact that while she was stripping our members of everything, Judge Mitchell granted $2 million in bonuses to Walter management is especially galling. If this is justice in America, then something is very, very wrong.” Walter Energy filed for bankruptcy in July and laid off nearly 200 people at a mine in Tuscaloosa County. The company set to put its assets up for auction Jan. 5. As an opening bid, lenders who banded together as Coal Acquisition have offered to exchange $1.25 billion of debt and pay $5.4 million in cash.
Coal miners rally to save Christmas for families of laid-off workers
A group of Alabama coal miners are creating a toy drive in order to “save Christmas” for the families of recently laid-off workers as economic changes come ahead of the holiday season. One group called “Adopt a Steel Worker/Coal Miner’s Family” is lining up support in order to make sure no local families take a hit from federal energy rules or receives a “lump of coal” for the holidays. “Seeing as Christmas is right around the corner, my hope is that we can come together as a community and help those affected to not feel the strain quite so much this holiday season,” reads the group’s Facebook page description. “Whether it’s donating gifts for children, money for the families, or some other type of help, I believe it can be a blessing to these families. If anyone has any ideas, please shoot me a message,” the group says. Stephanie Tingle, the Brookwood wife of a coal miner affected by recent layoffs by Walter Energy, is also helping via a “GoFundMe” campaign for other families in a similar position. On her campaign page, she described a meeting between workers and management before the firings that set her campaign in motion. “We went to a company and union meeting and as I watched the men in the latest layoff, which amounted to 266 workers, I began to cry as I watched these men clean their lockers with a look of defeat on their faces. During the meeting the [union] field Rep mentioned finding ways to aid the families of these laid off workers during Christmas,” Tingle wrote. “When I first learned of my husband being laid off all I could think of was my house, my car, my current lifestyle and how all that would change. That meeting changed my perspective. These children of these workers may not have a Christmas,” she wrote. “My husband and I don’t have any children but that doesn’t stop me from thinking about them especially during the holiday season. “A few guys offered to help sponsor a child and I wanted to grow that idea as best as possible. I want to give back because as wonderful as Christmas was for me personally growing up, I would never want to see a child suffer through the holidays.” You can donate to Stephanie’s crowd-funding page here. She says the goal of the group is to maximize the good that donations can do by pooling resources. “Every single penny is strictly for Christmas for the children of these men who unfortunately were laid off during the holiday season. I plan to purchase as many toys and/or bikes as I can make stretch with any money I can raise to help these men, women and their children,” wrote Tingle. Below, you can also see the details of a local upcoming toy drive in Brookwood Park, outside of Birmingham, where the Tingles’ efforts began.
Alabama business roundup: Headlines from across the state – 11/6/15 edition
What’s happening to Girl Scout cookies in the Yellowhammer state? How did other markets close the deal with Uber? What’s Walter Energy having to auction off under its new agreement? What Alabama company got “Made In America” honors from Martha Stewart? Answers to those questions and more in today’s Alabama business roundup: AL.com: Price goes up on Girl Scout cookies in Alabama The price of those irresistible Girl Scout cookies is going up. Both the Girl Scouts of North-Central Alabama and the Girls Scouts of Southern Alabama are raising the cost of cookies by 50 cents to $4 a box for the 2016 season. The price, however, is still one of the lowest in the nation, said Hannah Wallace, director of marketing and communications for the Girl Scouts of North-Central Alabama, which represents troops in 36 counties. Some troops in east Massachusetts, California and Hawaii are now selling cookies for $5 a box, according to reports. “The last time the Girl Scouts of North-Central Alabama raised Girl Scout cookie prices was in 2007 when the four legacy councils merged together to create GSNCA,” Wallace said. “We are so excited to be able to offer our girls more profits, as well as use the increased cookie revenue to provide the Girl Scout leadership experience to girls across the state.” Meghan Cochrane, director of public relations and marketing for the Girl Scouts of Southern Alabama, said the council is raising prices for the first time in more than a decade due to rising ingredients and transportation costs. “The council has been absorbing these increases in cost, and now we must finally raise the price for a package to an even $4,” she said. “The increase allows us to maintain and expand our high-quality programming and services; we will be able to increase troop proceeds and rewards.” Mary Charles, interim chief executive officer for the Girl Scouts of North-Central Alabama, echoed those sentiments. “This increased revenue means we will be able to better support our volunteers,” she said. “One of our most important goals is to make it as easy as possible for adults to lead troops that build girls of courage, confidence and character, who make the world a better place. An increase in the price of Girl Scout Cookies will help provide increased financial resources to troops for program and service to their communities as well as revenue for the council administrative functions.” Councils set their own cookie prices and it’s generally based on baker costs, ingredient costs, market size and availability and shipping costs. Troop proceeds from Girl Scout cookie sales in Alabama are anywhere from 55 cents per package ($6.60 per 12-package case) to 90 cents per package ($10.80 per 12-package case), Wallace said. Proceeds are determined by a troop per girl average, she said. Troop per girl average is determined by the number of packages sold divided by the number of girls selling. After paying the baker, all proceeds stay within the local council. New ways to purchase cookies Scout troops will begin taking preorders in December and throughout the Christmas season. Official sales will begin in February. Toffee-tastic Girl Scout cookies, the first gluten-free cookie, will be available in higher quantities in Alabama this season, Wallace said. They will also sell for $4 a box. For the first time, troops in Alabama will sell cookies online. “Girls can sell their cookies online and send an invitation (to family and friends) to buy them online,” Wallace said, adding online orders will be shipped to the orders. If you have trouble finding cookies for sale in February, visit GirlScoutCookies.organd type in your zip code to find booth sales. Also, there’s an app for that. Download the Girl Scout cookie finder where you usually buy your smart phone apps. Birmingham Business Journal: Walter Energy to auction assets under new agreement Walter Energy Inc. on Thursday announced it has entered into an asset purchase agreement with a newly formed entity capitalized and owned by members of the firm’s senior lender group. The new company will acquire nearly all of Walter Energy’s assets in Alabama, according to a release from Walter Energy. The decision to sell its Alabama assets will allow the company to continue to move forward with its current restructuring. The agreement – filed with the Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Alabama – is in connection with a proposed, court-supervised auction process under section 363 of the bankruptcy code. The agreement consists of cash consideration of $5.4 million, a $1.25 billion credit bid of existing indebtedness and the assumption of certain liabilities. An asset sale was one of the options included in Walter Energy’s restructuring plan when it filed for Chapter 11 protection in July. During the process, hundreds of Walter employees have been laid off – with the most recent round of temporary layoffs impacting 265 employees of Jim Walter Resources at its No.7 Mine in Brookwood, which is company’s largest and most productive mining operation. Earlier this month, Walter Energy announced 129 workers at Jim Walter’s No. 4 mine in Brookwood would be laid off, as a result of poor market conditions. The downturn for Alabama met coal producers is a result of another substantial downturn in the steelmaking sector – which is a primary customer of Alabama met coal. As steelmakers transition to new technology– primarily in China, which is in the midst of a construction lag – met coal producers like Walter continue to struggle adapting to the volatile global market. While Walter’s struggles have had the most profound impact on the Alabama coal sector, the company is not the only Alabama coal firm reeling as a result of the economic downturn facing the coal industry. Cliffs Natural Resources recently announced plans to cut its workforce by about 50 percent at two mining sites – the Oak Grove Mine in Jefferson County and the Pinnacle Mine in West Virginia. North American Coal Corp. on Oct. 10 also announced layoffs when it officially closed its Jasper operations, which impacted 118 workers. Birmingham Business
Walter Energy laying off 129 workers at Alabama coal mine
About 130 people are losing their jobs at a coal mine west of Birmingham. Walter Energy is laying off 129 workers at Jim Walters Resources No. 4 mine in Brookwood. Company spokesman Bill Stanhouse says the layoffs take effect Wednesday night. Stanhouse says the job cuts are a result of conditions in the coal market. The mine is operating at reduced production levels. Walter Energy filed for bankruptcy in July and laid off nearly 200 people at a mine in Tuscaloosa County. The latest job cuts were announced the same day former miners rallied in Brookwood in a demonstration to keep their health benefits and pensions. Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
Alabama business roundup: Headlines from across the state
Here’s a roundup of some of the top business headlines from across the state this week: AL.com: Brewers, winemakers voice concerns to state alcohol commission at meeting in Mobile A panel of roving lawmakers and other state officials tasked with revamping some of Alabama’s alcohol laws met in Mobile Thursday. Brewers, farmers who make wine and those that want to take the opportunity to bend their ears. The Alabama Alcohol and Beverage Study Commission is expected to visit Colorado and North Carolina later this year to learn about their alcohol laws once it swings through the state for meetings in Mobile, Hoover and Huntsville. An act of the legislature created the body after several measures that would have allowed breweries to sell beer directly to a consumer to go. Beer makers in the state argue that the three-tier system, which provides individual licenses for brewers, distributors and retailers needs to broaden in order for their businesses to grow. Off-premise sales is “our No. 1 goal,” said Brian Kane, owner of Fairhope Brewing Co., said to the commission. Tourists from out-of-state regularly expect to be able to come in taste beer and take some home, Kane said. “It seems the logical place to look, go to the brewery itself,” Kane said, noting that several states already permit those kinds of sales. “We’d like to have that person who comes in from Louisiana on their way to Gulf Shores come in and pick up a six-pack or a growler on the way pick up a six-pack or a growler from our place to go.” Under current law breweries and brewpubs are limited to selling beer in their tap rooms or restaurants, often in small amounts. The Alabama Brewers Guild released a report recently calling for the creation of a single craft brewer license. The advocacy organization’s proposal would allow brewery owners to sell beer directly to consumers in kegs and 32-ounce or 64-ounce jugs called growlers. Dan Roberts, executive director of the Brewers Guild, said though it may be “more controversial,” they’re also asking breweries receive permission to self-distribute and for brewpubs to sell their beer to go with the single license. “We’re open to alternatives,” Roberts said. Rebecca Maisel, a lawyer for Gulf Distributing Co. of Mobile, said in a prepared statement that a proposal from the beverage distribution industry is forthcoming after the commission finishes their research. Maisel defended the current laws at the meeting, saying the “three-tier system — as it is now — is working” in the state. “There are no barriers to entry to getting into a brewery and they already have the ability to have people come in and taste their beer in their taproom,” Maisel said. “So if someone wants to purchase their beer, they can go across to street where a distributor has brought it and they can buy it from that store.” Winemakers and distillers also impressed upon the commission needs for their industries. Cindy Monroe, a farmer in Chambers County, said she has “4 acres of grapes in the ground” with plans to more than double that by 2016 when she expects to open a winery. “But this industry today, the way the regulations are, they do not support Alabama farmers and Alabama growers,” Monroe said. Monroe, 55, sought to made her point with “show and tell” presentation, a basket filled with cane syrup, grits and wine — all made from products grown on the farm she has with her husband. Wineries are subject to regulations similar to the beer industry, she said they are limited to selling their product at the winery for visitors to drink and through a distributor. Under that practice, Monroe said it becomes more difficult for smaller establishments to gain a foothold in the industry. “We can make all of those things and I can go into any store in this state and sell it,” Monroe said. “But if I make wine, you can’t do that. Think about it from that perspective.” AL.com: APM Terminals secures first-round tax abatements for $47.5 million Mobile expansion APM Terminals‘ secured Wednesday the first of three requested tax abatements for its planned second-phase, $47.5 million container terminal expansion on Choctaw Point. The request, which came before the city of Mobile’s Industrial Development Board, represents the first local request approved invoking recently passed “Made in Alabama” jobs incentives legislation. The project, which will also expand the company’s container yard by 20 acres, represents a continued partnership between APM and the Alabama State Port Authority that has already seen the investment of nearly $50 million. The legislation, known as the Alabama Reinvestment and Abatements Act, extends the maximum duration of allowable non-educational ad valorem tax abatements from the traditional 10-year cap to 20 years, but it also introduces additional red tape to gain approval. The city of Mobile’s Industrial Development Board is authorized to approve requested municipal, county and state abatements through the initial 10-year period but can only grant approval for the city’s portion of the second 10-year period. All told, the city of Mobile’s board approved unanimously total non-educational ad valorem abatements totaling about $2.2 million for the first year and nearly $7.9 million for the full 20-year abatement. APM Terminals must now seek separate abatement approval from both Mobile County and the state of Alabama for the additional 10-year period. In recommending the project’s approval, Troy Wayman, the Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce’s vice president of economic development, told the board the project is expected to create 97 jobs with average annual salaries of $53,000, boosting both the city’s and the Port of Mobile’s “logistical advantage.” “The importance of this expansion to our local economy is quite significant…Any infrastructure improvements we can foster for our port…represent significant benefit to us in economic development,” Wayman said. Per the chamber’s benefit-cost analysis, the project is also expected to generate $11.2 million and $1.1 million for local and state education coffers respectively during the total abatements’ duration. Specifically, the project consists of two parts: A capital investment
