Published: Tuesday, Mar. 31, 2009 / Updated: Tuesday, Mar. 31, 2009 03:25 PM
Continental cuts ribbon on Panhandle HQ
Continental Tire officially opened its new North American headquarters Thursday in the Panhandle, boosting the county's economy and the area's reputation as a corporate destination.
The $11 million, 75,000-square-foot building in MacMillan Business Park employs 375 people, including more than 100 from York and Lancaster counties.
Continental's North American headquarters was formerly located in Charlotte.
"We look forward to a long and successful future with this beautiful state," CEO Matthias Schoenberg told employees and guests during a ceremony to mark the official opening. "We are very excited to work here. ... We are pleased to call the great Palmetto State our home."
The company relocated from Charlotte after being offered incentives by Lancaster County and the S.C. Department of Commerce. The county offered a property tax rate freeze at 6 percent and up to $200,000 in tax rebates, while the state offered job development credits for new jobs created.
The 300-plus positions that moved from Charlotte to the Indian Land site will be viewed as newly-created jobs in South Carolina, the Department of Commerce has said.
Since 2005, a handful of companies with Charlotte headquarters have moved to Lancaster County, including Wellman Industries, Inspiration Networks and PCI Group, a New York-based collection letter mailing service.
Lancaster County Administrator Steve Willis said Continental's move grows Indian Land's reputation as a place for businesses to locate. It also should help the local economy because workers will spend money in local stores, he said.
"It helps the community, it helps the state, it helps the citizens," Willis said.
By coming to Indian Land instead of leaving the Charlotte area, Continental kept local workers out of the unemployment line, Willis said. The company has 123 employees who live in York or Lancaster counties and moved to the new site.
"Continental moving here saved local jobs - there's no doubt about that," Willis said.
Lancaster County Council Chairman Fred Thomas said he hopes the new Continental headquarters will help attract even more companies and give the county's young people places to work after college. That's something the county hasn't always had, he said.
"We hope this is one of many opportunities our young folks will have to come back to ... and enjoy the American dream," Thomas said.
Ex-Continental workers op-posed incentives
Continental ceased tire-making operations at its production facility on Westinghouse Boulevard in 2006 and laid off nearly 500 workers after a lengthy union dispute.
Many of those workers were unhappy with the incentives given to the company to relocate in Lancaster County, complaining that Continental had unfair wage negotiations with the Steelworkers Union, that it didn't honor seniority during layoffs and withheld severance pay and access to retirement savings after layoffs, among other things.
One of those workers was Mark West of Rock Hill, who was laid off in 2006 after 28 years with the company. West, 49, said he still feels neglected by Continental.
"They're just not living up to their obligation," said West, who found another manufacturing job last July. "It kind of leaves a bad taste in your mouth."
Rick Ledsinger, vice president of human resources for the company, said Continental made five severance proposals to the union, but negotiations broke down and no agreement was ever reached.
"Their (final) offer was much higher than ours," he said.
Unless union leadership contacts the company to renew talks, Ledsinger said the situation won't change. A union representative couldn't be reached Thursday.
But West and others are still bothered that things were left unsettled.
"I kind of want to get some closure out of the thing," West said. "I feel like I'm owed something that was documented that hasn't come to fruition."
Continental Tire North America is part of Continental Corp., based in Germany. The corporation employs nearly 140,000 people worldwide.
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