Twinkie is Dead?!!

Yeah, I don't care who's responsible. This is almost worse (not really) than Obama being reelected. When I was a kid, anything in my lunch that was a twinkie was a good thing. Twinkie was quite literally love to me.

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.”

This shows how unions directly influence the cost of goods and services, thereby driving the cost of living up, thereby needing more money for that 'living wage', causing need for more 'negotiations' with unions wanting more, eventually driving companies out of business, unless, like USPS, the 'company' is guaranteed by the Constitution or bailed out in some kind of kabooki theater like GM -- (GM is going down and we're all going down!! The world is coming to and end!!).

Interestingly, the Twinkie case is a good illustration of just how long a company can last by going through bankruptcy. Still think GM wouldn't be around? Think again. Hostess had already been through bankruptcy before this.

 So in the end, BCGTM has shut down all jobs within Hostess Brands, not just their own. Good luck to them in their future careers.

"Most employees who lose their jobs should be eligible for government-provided unemployment benefits," Hostess said.

Guess we'll all pay in the end for union stupidity.