End of a Good Jobs Era

Newton, Iowa lived and breathed Maytag. An entire town of hard-working, loyal workers who took great pride in their jobs and the appliances they built for Maytag.

Of course, they'd been under the corporate ax for years - just like the rest of us. I hoped when the Chinese failed to buy Maytag, with the explicit intention of killing it and taking the name, that Newton might survive as a company town. Guess not.

Whirlpool to Cut 4,500 Jobs, Close Plants - Yahoo! News

"Whirlpool plans to close Maytag washer and dryer plants in Newton, Iowa; Herrin, Ill.; and Searcy, Ark. ...

Also slated to close are Maytag's corporate headquarters and research center in Newton, Iowa, as well as administrative offices in Schaumburg, Ill., Canada and Mexico."