Biden says Amazon, Home Depot and other companies commit to avoiding layoffs in Baltimore after bridge collapse

By Victor Reklaitis

As the presidential race against Trump ramps up, Biden officials say they're being proactive and aiming to address any potential economic impact

The Biden White House on Friday emphasized that big companies in the Baltimore area have promised not to lay off workers following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge last week, with those pledges coming after encouragement from administration officials.

"Major local employers, including UPS (UPS), Amazon (AMZN), Domino Sugar, Home Depot (HD), Mercedes-Benz (XE:MBG), Subaru (JP:7270), and Floor & Decor (FND) are committing to retain their workers - amounting to thousands of jobs - in their Port of Baltimore facilities," the White House said in a news release before President Joe Biden gave a speech at the collapse site later in the day.

In his remarks, Biden said 20,000 jobs depend on Baltimore's port, and his administration's steps to help affected workers include grants for them along with low-interest loans for small businesses impacted by the collapse.

"Folks, we all need to step up. Amazon, Home Depot, Domino Sugar and many other companies all rely on this port, and they have committed to keep workers and payrolls and their businesses in Baltimore," Biden said.

"I call on every company at and around the port to do the same thing, the same exact thing: commit to stay. And to the customers who use this port: We're coming back. We're coming back soon."

On Thursday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters that Biden's chief of staff, Jeff Zients, and other administration officials had "called major employers in the area, including retail chains and distributors, to encourage them to retain workers."

"We're being proactive, obviously, in trying to make sure that we deal with any potential economic impact right now," Jean-Pierre said Thursday during a press briefing.

The outreach by administration officials comes as the 2024 White House race ramps up - and as some polls have indicated that swing-state voters may trust the presumptive Republican nominee, former President Donald Trump, over the Democratic incumbent when it comes to handling the economy. Strong readings for economic indicators haven't seemed to help Biden's job-approval ratings.

Related: March jobs report: U.S. adds 303,000 positions in yet another blowout showing

Temporary channels are now open to allow limited access to the Port of Baltimore after the bridge collapsed on March 26, blocking the main channel. Many workers at the port have seen their work either slowed or stopped completely, according to an NPR report.

Biden's visit to the collapse site Friday afternoon included an aerial tour and a briefing on response efforts, and it was scheduled to involve a meeting with the families of the six workers killed in the collapse.

Shortly after the collapse, Biden vowed that the federal government would pay for the entire cost of rebuilding the Francis Scott Key Bridge, saying he expected Congress would support the effort. But there has been some Republican opposition, with Rep. Dan Meuser of Pennsylvania saying it was "outrageous" for Biden to "take the easy route all the time and just try to spend the taxpayers' money."

Now read: This is how the Port of Baltimore will bounce back after bridge collapse

-Victor Reklaitis

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04-05-24 1631ET

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