Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. said yesterday that it will close its Kelly-Springfield Tire operations in Cumberland next year, displacing 323 workers.

About a third of the workers -- all of whom have sales, marketing or financial duties -- will be transferred to Goodyear's headquarters in Akron, Ohio, and the rest will be terminated through layoffs and retirements.

The plan for about 120 employees in the company's technical center is not final, said Goodyear spokesman Chuck Sinclair. He expects many of those workers to be transferred to Akron.

The Kelly-Springfield offices are expected to be closed in September, Sinclair said.

Kelly-Springfield has been based in Cumberland since 1916. The company was acquired by Goodyear in 1935.

Goodyear closed its Kelly-Springfield tire plant in Cumberland in 1987, but the division's sales and marketing operations continued there.

"On the upside, Goodyear allowed 12 more years of salaries and benefits for a good number of workers who are headed to full retirement," Sinclair said.

Pub Date: 10/06/98