Carrier, union agree of severance deal for 1,400 workers

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Carrier Corp. and United Steelworkers Local 1999 have agreed on a severance package paying 1,400 employees being displaced in Indianapolis the equivalent of one week for every year of service and providing six months of medical insurance.

The agreement released Wednesday also allows employees to be reimbursed for education and technical training, and it extends the labor contract in place at the Indianapolis plant. Work there is being moved to Mexico.

Union business representative Kelly Hugunin says the agreement is better for workers than called for in a labor contract.

Carrier spokeswoman Michelle Caldwell says in a statement that "Carrier recognizes the impact on employees, their families and the community."

Parent company United Technologies Corp. also is closing a United Technologies Electronic Controls factory in Huntington with 700 workers.