Oakland-The company said on Friday that a scrap metal foundry that has been operating in East Oakland for more than a century will lay off about 100 jobs in the East Bay and transfer jobs to Texas due to environmental regulations. Tight.

AB&I Foundry started operations in Oakland in 1906, and the company said it plans to permanently cut about half of the jobs in the largest city in the East Bay sometime in 2022.

The company recycles scrap metal, melts it, and manufactures new cast iron pipes and fittings. In turn, these fittings are key components of the piping systems for multi-family apartment and commercial buildings in California and the West Coast.

Michael Lowe, general manager of AB&I Foundry, said on Friday: “When the molding business moves out of California in 2022, about half of the workforce will be affected by unemployment. We are very sad.”

The 100 jobs that will be permanently lost in the Bay Area are related to the company's shaping business. The production process uses a sand casting system. If the environment's restrictions on air quality are further tightened, the system may be difficult to continue to operate.

AB&I stated: “The company will permanently close the forming business in 2022 to meet the ever-increasing regulatory standards as soon as possible and before the regulatory deadline.”

Oakland-based AB&I said it will retain about 100 jobs in Oakland, focusing on non-forming production, mainly converting scrap metal into 10-foot-long pipes.

The company said that the non-forming business will continue to strengthen engineering controls.

"AB&I has an excellent track record of compliance with applicable regulatory standards," Lowe said. "Changing standards will create business uncertainty and make it difficult for us to continue doing business in California."

The forming work will be carried out at an existing foundry in northeastern Texas.

Between now and 2022, AB&I intends to do everything it can to ensure that unemployed workers receive training for new occupations.

"We treat our team members as family members, and we are proud of the number of people they give back to the community," Lowe said. "In the coming year, we will work closely with them to ensure that they are ready to enter the labor market by formulating employment preparation plans and helping with placement."

Related article Record number of U.S. workers leaving their jobs. The Bay Area job market is booming in October, with huge gains. California unemployment benefits surge. Walters: California’s high unemployment rate may be too low. Record 4.4 million Americans resigned in September for an average tenure of the company It is estimated that the life span of an AB&I worker is 13 years old.

AB&I officials warned that the company is simply not sure whether it can continue operations in California.

"We hope that reducing our business will make it possible to continue doing business in the state and provide much-needed high-paying union work in Oakland," Lowe said. He added: "But it remains to be seen."

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