NIAGARA WILL SURVIVE THE DELPHI COLLAPSE
By Bob Confer

Since the early 1990’s when it became apparent that things weren’t like they were back in the glory days, the Niagara County rumor mill distributed stories from Delphi insiders and former employees alike to create numerous local myths about the impending death of the Lockport facility. Unfortunately for thousands of local families, the rumors have proved prophetic. Delphi has declared bankruptcy, quite possibly signaling the death knell for the Lockport operations, a facility of which Delphi’s corporate leaders have cited as a troubled plant.

This is a scary period for Delphi employees and justifiably so. There exists a huge unknown not only about the long-term future but about the immediate future of the Lockport operations as well. The cold, aggressive nature of CEO Robert Miller leads one to believe that he could pull the trigger at a moments notice and shutdown or vastly downsize the facility, be it years from now or maybe even tomorrow. Such drama is a relative unknown to most of the employees, as the Lockport plant has been a source of consistency for decades; their fathers worked there as their fathers did before them.

Were closure to actually rear its ugly head there would be some tough times for Niagara County. One can assume a good portion of the decade immediately following such a decision would create a crippling ripple effect upon each and every family connected to Delphi, every local industry or service that supports Delphi, the local services who cater to Delphi’s families, and the taxpayers who rely on Delphi’s sizable contribution to the County’s tax rolls.

One can rest assured, though, that those dark days will not be a stigma that haunts Niagara County for all eternity or brings the local economy to complete ruin. Western New York breeds a resilient people. We will overcome such a devastating loss and we will persevere.

The void created by Delphi’s potential death will ultimately be filled by many new or existing - but much smaller – corporations, and Niagara County will be healthy once again. Such is the conundrum of the “new economy”. Big corporations continue to shrink or shutter their doors across the nation, yet our economy still continues to grow at a decent rate, proved by the consistently-expanding gross domestic product and income levels rising well beyond the rate of inflation. Smaller entities are picking up steam and the slack left behind by Big Business. A veritable small business movement is taking place.

Small businesses are the factor driving the US economy. According to government statistics, small businesses represent 99.7% of all employer firms, employ half the workforce, and, quite extraordinarily, are growing at a net jobs rate of 60 to 80% annually. It is quite believable that such a movement will happen in Niagara County because most Delphi employees will undoubtedly take their knowledge and skills to small businesses in the area or start businesses on their own.

Such ingenuity and a Lazarus-like revival can be seen on a local scale and should prove encouraging to all. When Medina’s largest employer, Fisher-Price, ceased operations it was feared that Medina would become a ghost town and Orleans County would suffer greatly. That did not happen. Instead, after only a brief period of anguish and agony, new companies claimed Medina as their home and existing companies in Medina and Albion pulled from the newfound labor base and grew exponentially.  

If Delphi's Lockport plant closes we will witness a dark age previously unknown to the Lockport area. But, America was built - and will continue to survive - upon the mores of rugged individualism and capitalism. Niagara County's citizens will grind it out and their efforts will bear fruit thanks to their ingenuity, expertise, and work ethic. Keep the faith...Niagara County will rise from the ashes and Niagara County will succeed.