| NEWS | Surge Protectors An Arizona N95 mask manufacturer laid off hundreds, despite the Omicron surge. BY KRISTEN MOSBRUCKER N early two years ago, a global pandemic swept across the globe and masks for protec- tion were in short supply so manufacturers hustled to crank out masks made in America. Now that mutations of COVID-19 are spreading the virus even among those who were vaccinated, there is little pressure to do the same. Citing a lack of demand for masks, global manufacturer Honeywell Interna- tional Inc. cut most of its Arizona produc- tion in recent months. Meanwhile, COVID-19 cases bolstered by the “extraordinarily contagious” Omni- cron variant is spiking in Arizona, accord- Laid-off workers were encouraged to apply for other jobs within the company, Sayres said. The Chandler operation “remains Hon- eywell’s largest N95 manufacturing opera- tion” and it’s still in operation, according to the company. Across the Valley including all other business divisions, Honeywell employs 8,000 workers. Honeywell hustled in mid-2020 to ret- rofit manufacturing sites in Arizona and Rhode Island. The move was lauded as a way to manu- facture in America while overseas supply chains were crippled at the time. It seemed like a lasting trend. But the experiment failed only a year later. Honeywell’s Phoenix expansion opened with great fanfare and a visit from then-President Donald Trump, even though he refused to wear a mask inside the factory where masks were made. Honeywell inked contracts to supply the Strategic National Stockpile with personal protection equipment, such as masks for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The company geared up to produce more than 20 million N95 masks each month between the Arizona and Rhode Island sites. In Arizona, Governor Doug Ducey bought 6 million masks in a 12-month contract that be- gan in April 2020. He ear- marked the masks for the Arizona Department of Health Services. “I’m grateful to Honeywell YouTube Honeywell stood up N95 manufacturing in Arizona, hiring hundreds of workers, but has since laid the vast majority off. ing to the state health department. A surge in the state began two days after Christmas with more than 7,000 cases that have shown no signs of slowing down, state records show. And that’s likely an underes- timate since there are so many at-home COVID-19 tests. Days into the New Year, the state reported 7,212 new cases of COVID-19. More than 6,500 people died of COVID-19 in the past six months in Ari- zona — including dozens each day in De- cember 2020. “Last year, we saw a significant reduc- tion in demand for N95s in the U.S.,” said Scott Sayres, spokesperson for Honeywell. “For this reason, Honeywell adjusted its N95 operations and reduced manual pro- duction at our Chandler, AZ facility to sup- port our customers’ requirements and align our operations to market demand.” 14 for stepping up and partnering with Arizona to help get these masks to our doctors, nurses, and EMTs on the frontlines,” Ducey said in a statement at the time. Ducey’s office did not respond to com- ment for this story. Elected officials promised hundreds of jobs to Arizona residents during the eco- nomic meltdown in late March 2020. But just 13 months later, hundreds of workers at the Honeywell in Phoenix lost their jobs, 757 people to be exact. Then 470 workers in Smithfield, Rhode Island, lost their jobs too. It was when many states dropped mask mandates and COVID-19 vaccines prompted some residents to stop wearing masks altogether. Honeywell said that there was a “dramatic reduction in demand for N95s” at the time. Since then, two variants of COVID-19 — here’s looking at you, Delta and Omnicorn — have forced many to change course and reverse previous decisions. Despite that, Honeywell had continued its largely automated mask factory opera- tions in Chandler after winding >> p 16 JAN 13TH– JAN 19TH, 2022 PHOENIX NEW TIMES | MUSIC | CAFE | FILM | CULTURE | NIGHT+DAY | FEATURE | NEWS | OPINION | FEEDBACK | CONTENTS | phoenixnewtimes.com
