U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) demanded answers from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) about their lack of adequate oversight in allowing Energizer’s 2018 acquisition of Rayovac to proceed, leading to price hikes for consumers and now risking hundreds of Wisconsin jobs. Since that merger, Energizer has dominated the market, allowing it to raise prices with limited competition and potentially close two Wisconsin plants in Fennimore and Portage, which may lead to layoffs for 600 union workers.
In 2018, the FTC unconditionally cleared Energizer’s acquisition of Spectrum Holdings’ battery business Rayovac, resulting in Energizer controlling an estimated 40 percent of the United States’ battery market, 60 percent of the world hearing aid battery market, and 85 percent of the total battery market.
“From price increases to the announced closure of two plants in Wisconsin, this merger has been profoundly and predictably damaging to Wisconsin families,” wrote Senator Baldwin. “Energizer’s dominant position in the battery market even before the acquisition and its postmerger behavior in labor and consumer markets raise material questions regarding the Commission’s 2018 decision that demand immediate explanation.”
While the FTC’s European counterpart heavily scrutinized the merger and imposed conditions to protect European consumers, the FTC quickly cleared the merger, leading to a highly concentrated U.S. marketplace that has harmed Wisconsinites. Following the merger in 2021, Energizer announced a price hike for the vast majority of their North American customers, despite already being a profitable company. “Given its dominant market position, Energizer was able to raise its prices with little fear of losing its customers. These price increases, which contributed to the bottom line of an already profitable corporation, were made possible by a seemingly cursory review by the nation’s top consumer watchdog,” Senator Baldwin wrote.
In January of this year, Energizer also announced its plans to close their plants in Portage and Fennimore – both of which were included in the 2018 merger – in favor of offshoring Wisconsin manufacturing jobs and sending other jobs to states with fewer worker protections. The proposed shutdowns could eliminate 600 good-paying, union jobs in Wisconsin.
“These families – who may lose their livelihoods to benefit an already sizeable profit margin – deserve answers from the agency that failed to challenge this merger. Inadequate antitrust enforcement has real and predictable effects on Wisconsin families, including price increases, offshoring, and plant closures,” continued Senator Baldwin. “Given the seemingly brief review of the Energizer-Spectrum Holdings merger and the potential loss of 600 good-paying union jobs, Wisconsin families deserve to know why the FTC failed to challenge this deal.”
“Energizer’s proposed plant closings in Portage and Fennimore are an attack on working people,” said Sean M. O’Brien, President ofTeamsters General. “The Teamsters applaud Sen. Baldwin for scrutinizing Energizer’s plan to kill these good union jobs, and we strongly support her request for antitrust regulators to revisit Energizer’s 2018 merger with Spectrum. These threatened plant closings raise serious questions about why that merger wasn’t challenged. Thanks to Sen. Baldwin’s leadership and the Teamsters’ will to fight, Energizer can be held accountable, Wisconsin families can get some answers, and other greedy corporations can take notice.”
“Mergers like Energizer/ Spectrum can and have posed devastating consequences for working people, consumers, and local communities,” said Krista Brown, Senior Policy Analyst at the American Economic Liberties Project. “It’s great to see Senator Baldwin stand up for Wisconsinites and work closely with FTC to ensure that deals like this are getting proper review.”
