Tyre firm Goodyear may shut down a factory next year that employs 1,700 workers in Fayetteville, North Carolina, US, as part of a domestic restructuring plan.
Goodyear, known for its namesake brand as well as Cooper Tires and Dunlop, is in talks with the United Steelworkers union to “close the facility by the end of 2027” following “extensive efforts” to make it more competitive, the Akron, Ohio-based company said recently.
Goodyear has struggled with sales and profitability over the past year or so, including a net loss of US$1.7 billion in 2025.
Goodyear has worked to cut costs in recent years, but ongoing demand weakness and raw material disruptions in the Middle East have made conditions more challenging for the tyre maker.
To better navigate the dynamic environment, Goodyear is looking to “simplify” the organisation through continued restructuring and cost actions, CEO Mark Stewart said recently.
The Fayetteville factory opened in 1969 under the ownership of Kelly-Springfield Tire Co., a subsidiary of Goodyear, CityView NC reported. It has undergone several upgrades and expansions, with enough capacity to produce 65,000 commercial tyres a day. The facility was later rebranded Goodyear in 2005.
During the fourth quarter, Goodyear approved a plan to lay off 300 workers at the Fayetteville facility. The company also moved to cut commercial tyre production at its Danville, Virginia, facility, close a production plant in Kariega, South Africa, and reduce its corporate headcount last year, according to its 2025 annual report.
Excluding Fayetteville, the changes affected 1,850 plant workers and 80 sales, manager and office roles.