Whirlpool agrees to pay state $800,000 for job losses

Whirlpool Corp. has agreed to pay Indiana $800,000 after failing to maintain employment levels called for in an economic development incentives agreement.

The Benton Harbor, Mich.-based appliance maker and the Indiana Economic Development Corp. announced the agreement on Tuesday involving Whirlpool’s Evansville operations.

The company said in 2009 that it would cut 1,100 jobs in Evansville by closing a refrigerator plant and moving production work to Mexico. As part of the closing, Whirlpool agreed to preserve 260 procurement jobs in the city to retain previously awarded state tax credits. However, the company recently relocated those positions to its headquarters in Michigan.

Whirlpool still has about 230 employees, including 210 Indiana residents, at a product-development center in Evansville. The company also has a national parts operation center in Plainfield, where nearly 500 workers are employed by Ryder Integrated Logistics.