...but that neglects the relationship formed over time when children follow parents into a factory, when executives' and line workers' sons play on the same football team.
From an editorial in the NYTimes:
It comes as little surprise to anyone nowadays that the deep bonds between company and company town are only as strong as the former's share price, measured by fiscal quarters rather than generations. Still, there is something sad about the spurned affection of a community for its company, the way residents of Newton, Iowa, feel about Maytag.
As Monica Davey reported in The Times last week, Newton must bid farewell to the appliance maker that has defined it since Maytag was founded there in 1893. To a big-city native, it may sound quaint that Newton crowned a Maytag Queen or has washing machines in its history museum, but that neglects the relationship formed over time when children follow parents into a factory, when executives' and line workers' sons play on the same football team. It ignores how much pride people derive from their jobs, even unglamorous ones.
Maytag was bought by its rival Whirlpool in March, and 4,500 Maytag jobs will be lost as operations are merged, both at the headquarters and in factories in Newton and other towns. The cuts will be offset by 1,500 new positions for those willing to move to Whirlpool locations, especially in Michigan where the company is based. But Maytag the company is now gutted and replaced by the hollow marketing concept of Maytag the brand.
Shoppers probably won't notice, but Newton and the laid-off Maytag workers everywhere will feel a void. The economy is growing fast, but American workers are downbeat, and Maytag helps explain why. Jobs can be replaced, but the sense of safety and security cannot. The brand lives on, but the identity is gone.
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