Casey asks feds to look into shutdown of Pa. glass factory

Sen. Bob Casey on Friday urged federal officials to act quickly and block the imminent shutdown of a Washington County, Pennsylvania, glass factory.

In a letter to Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan, Sen. Casey called on the commission and Department of Justice to take action and investigate Centre Lane Partners, the private equity firm in control of the Charleroi factory.

The closure would be a shock to the Mon Valley and result in about 250 lost jobs by March.

"I urge you to take whatever action necessary — including filing for preliminary injunctive relief — to block this plant closure pending the completion of an investigation into the matter," the letter reads.

On Sept. 5, Anchor Hocking — affiliates of Centre Lane Partners, and operators of the Charleroi plant — internally announced plans to close the 132-year old factory and move all services to another plant in Lancaster, Ohio. Anchor Hocking notified the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry of plans to close the factory by Feb. 28 in a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Notice filed Oct. 15.

According to the notice, the plant's 270 employees will be let go in waves, with the first round of layoffs beginning on Dec. 9 and affecting more than half of all workers.

Anchor Hocking and Centre Lane Partners could not be immediately reached for comment.

In the letter, Casey questions the decision to shut down the plant, transactions of Centre Lane Partners and the broader impact of the factory's closure.

The Federal Trade Commission confirmed receipt of the letter, but declined to comment.

Instant Brands previously owned the Charleroi plant, but filed for bankruptcy in June 2023. The company gained permission to sell its appliances and housewares businesses to Centre Lane Partners, including the Pyrex brand, the glassware manufactured in Charleroi.

While the appliances transaction went through, the sale of the housewares business — priced at $228 million — was denied regulatory approval. Months later, Instant Brands' housewares division emerged from bankruptcy reorganized and under the control of its prior lenders, including Centre Lane Partners.

According to Casey's letter, Centre Lane acquired a chunk of the company that included Pyrex, one of its largest brands. They purchased the remainder of the company less than two weeks later.

Casey's letter claims Centre Lane then transferred ownership of the housewares brand to Anchor Hocking — for just a third of the price it was valued at during the bankruptcy proceedings. Casey questions that drastic price drop. He also asks whether it's legal for a company to make an acquisition that was previously denied under new terms without notifying the Federal Trade Commission.

According to the letter, it remains unclear whether that transfer of ownership gave Anchor Hocking control of the Pyrex brand — the glassware manufactured in Charleroi .

Over the last decade, Centre Lane Partners has acquired multiple kitchen and houseware brands, with ownership divided among its affiliates.

Meanwhile, union leadership at the factory said they have been communicating with Casey's office daily for weeks.

United Steelworkers Local 53-G vice president Daniele Byrne said she was notified Friday morning that the disassembly and transfer of equipment in the factory will begin as early as Oct. 28.

"It's very important to get this investigation done on the fast track because if they start ripping these presses out, we're going to lose employees and we won't be able to complete orders," Byrne said.

Since the plant's closure was announced, 40 employees have quit or been laid off, according to Byrne. That includes the factory's safety director, head of production and multiple engineers, plant employees said.