Whirlpool’s Retiree Health Victory Won’t Be Disturbed

Hoover Co. retirees won’t get another chance to convince the Sixth Circuit that Whirlpool Corp. violated their collective bargaining agreements when it drastically reduced their health coverage.

The court won’t reconsider its February decision upholding benefit cuts made by Whirlpool, which assumed liability for the retirees’ benefits after a series of corporate acquisitions. The agreements covering the Hoover retirees lacked clear, affirmative language indicating that Whirlpool had an obligation to fund their health benefits after the expiration of the agreements’ general durational clause, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit determined.

The retirees objected to this ruling, saying ...