A sampling of some Louisiana chemical plants indicates that they will probably cut a total of 700 to 1,200 workers over the next year, Louisiana Chemical Association President Dan Borné says. That would represent a workforce reduction of 3% to 5%, which tracks a national cutback of nearly 5%.
The LCA is conducting a survey of its members, but all the results are not in yet, Borné said at an appearance today at the Baton Rouge Press Club. He says production is down nearly 18% in the Gulf Coast region and 11% nationally. Some major capital projects are coming to an end, and the pipeline of new projects is nearly empty, which means several thousand contractors in south Louisiana could be out of work soon. Borne says most indicators show the economy bottoming out in the third quarter of this year, but most economists predict a relatively weak and slow recovery. The housing market appears to be stabilizing, which is good news for the chemical industry since it produces many of the materials that go into homes, he says.
During his remarks, Borné lashed out at the Tulane Environmental Law Clinic, which has filed a suit he says seeks to impose new fees on area industries and require many small businesses to file for permits with the Department of Environmental Quality and the Environmental Protection Agency. “Why does Tulane University permit a unit of its law school a license to kill jobs in the Greater Baton Rouge Area?” he says.—David Jacobs
