Whirlpool said on December 1, 2023, that it received 100 points on the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s 2023–2024 Corporate Equality Index and its Equality 100 Award. The company said it met the index’s requirements, including nondiscrimination policies, equivalent partner benefits and an employee Pride Network.
BENTON HARBOR, MI / ACCESSWIRE / December 1, 2023 / Whirlpool Corporation announced today that it received a score of 100 on the Human Rights Campaign Foundation's 2023-2024 Corporate Equality Index (CEI), the nation's foremost benchmarking survey and report measuring corporate policies and practices related to LGBTQ+ workplace equality. Whirlpool Corp. has achieved this honor for nearly two decades running.
The Human Rights Campaign’s Whirlpool Corp. scorecard lists a total of 5 out of 5, including 50/50, 25/25 and 20/20 point components, and records no penalty. The supplied scorecard excerpt does not identify the assessment period or explain the scoring categories.
In 2026, Whirlpool planned layoffs at its Amana, Iowa, plant, including 341 workers, while saying modernization and market conditions were driving changes; the union disputed that account and alleged work was shifting to Mexico. Workers and lawmakers criticized the cuts. Whirlpool said Amana would continue making refrigerators and support affected employees.
Workers at Whirlpool, the US’s largest appliance manufacturer and a champion of Donald Trump’s tariff policies, are criticizing the company for cutting jobs at an Iowa plant while bolstering production in Mexico.
AMANA — Whirlpool Corp. says recent layoffs at its Amana manufacturing facility are part of a broader effort to modernize the plant and keep it competitive long-term — a response that Iowa Republican U.S. Reps. Mariannette Miller-Meeks and Ashley Hinson say they will continue to scrutinize as hundreds of workers prepare to lose their jobs.
Sam Cicinelli, the midwest territory general vice-president for IAM, criticized Whirlpool for the layoffs after the company received millions of dollars in subsidies and tax credits in Iowa.
During Trump’s first term, Whirlpool sought and received tariffs on imported washing machines, their competitors, calling it a win “for American workers and consumers alike.” In 2020 Trump gave a speech at a Whirlpool plant in Ohio, calling the compan
After a four-day bench trial, a federal judge awarded Carlota Freeman $773,261 in back and front pay and $300,000 in compensatory damages. The EEOC said evidence showed managers knew of escalating harassment by a male coworker, failed to stop it, and that the coworker assaulted Freeman, causing permanent mental injuries.
Following a bench trial, Tennessee District Court Judge John T. Nixon last week awarded Freeman $773,261 in back pay and front pay, and $300,000 in compensatory damages for nonpecuniary injuries – the maximum allowed under federal law. During the four-day trial, the evidence showed that Freeman reported escalating offensive verbal conduct and gestures by the male coworker over a period of two months before he physically assaulted her; four levels of Whirlpool's management were aware of the escalating harassment; Whirlpool failed to take effective steps to stop the harassment; and, Freeman suffered devastating permanent mental injuries that will prevent her from working again as a result of the assault and Whirlpool's failure to protect her.
In August 2023, Whirlpool agreed to pay an $11.5 million civil penalty to settle CPSC charges that it knowingly failed to promptly report a defect in 17 JennAir, KitchenAid and Whirlpool cooktop models. The CPSC said reports included property damage, ignitions and minor burns; the agreement also requires compliance controls and annual reporting for three years.
Beginning in November 2017 and continuing into 2019, Whirlpool received numerous reports from consumers that cooktop surface elements turned on by themselves. Despite possessing information that reasonably supported the conclusion that the cooktops contained a defect that could create a substantial product hazard or created an unreasonable risk of serious injury or death, Whirlpool did not immediately report to the Commission. By the time Whirlpool filed an initial report with the Commission, Whirlpool had received at least 157 reports of the cooktops turning on by themselves, including 14 reports of property damage, four reports of objects igniting, and two reports of minor burns. Whirlpool and the Commission jointly announced a recall of the cooktops on August 28, 2019.
Whirlpool agreed to sell all its Russian operations to Arçelik for deferred payments of up to $233 million over 10 years, according to a June 2022 report. The company later said its Russia exit contributed to a $371 million second-quarter loss; it also cut its annual profit outlook, while citing higher costs and lower sales volumes.
Whirlpool Corp. WHR -3.40%decrease; down pointing triangle said it lost $371 million in the second quarter stemming from the appliance maker’s exit from its business in Russia and cut its profit outlook for the year.
Whirlpool Corp. agreed to sell the entirety of its Russian operations to Arcelik AS for deferred payments of as much as $233 million over 10 years.
In June 2026, Bloomberg columnist and Cato Institute economist Scott Lincicome described Whirlpool as a “poster child” for tariffs, saying the company has long sought and won government protection from foreign competition. His commentary cited Whirlpool’s patriotic branding; the supplied excerpts do not detail the tariff measures or their effects.
Whirlpool Corp.’s website proudly states, “Started in America. Stayed in America.” The self-styled “America’s Home Appliance Company” has used this kind of patriotic framing to justify its decades-old campaign for government protection from foreign competition — protection Whirlpool has repeatedly won. The company has thus become a protectionist poster child among tariff fans in both government and the private sector.
Whirlpool Corp.’s website proudly states, “Started in America. Stayed in America.” The self-styled “America’s Home Appliance Company” has used this kind of patriotic framing to justify its decades-old campaign for government protection from foreign competition — protection Whirlpool has repeatedly won. The company has thus become a protectionist poster child among tariff fans in both government and the private sector.
Whirlpool is cutting 341 jobs at its Amana, Iowa, plant effective March 9, 2026, after cutting 250 jobs in July 2025. IAM union officials said the company told them further cuts were coming. Workers and union representatives said production had shifted to Mexico; Whirlpool’s account of the changes is not included.
Effective 9 March, 341 jobs are being cut at the Whirlpool plant in Amana, Iowa. The cuts come less than a year after 250 jobs were cut in July 2025. According to International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers union (IAM) officials, the company has informed them that more cuts are on the way later this year. The plant produces refrigerators under the Whirlpool, KitchenAid, Maytag and Amana brands.
Whirlpool announced in July 2026 that its Feel Good Fridge program had deployed more than 4,000 refurbished refrigerators nationwide, surpassing its original target of 3,000 by 2030. Launched in 2021, the company program works with Feeding America and local food banks; Whirlpool also reported more than 250,000 pounds of food delivered and 25,000 families reached.
NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESS Newswire / July 20, 2026 / Whirlpool Corporation announced today that its Feel Good Fridge program has officially reached a major milestone, deploying more than 4,000 refurbished refrigerators across the United States. The company originally had a goal of deploying 3,000 fridges by 2030 nationwide. However, the company has bypassed this goal ahead of schedule through strengthened partnerships and the hard work of dozens of employee volunteers.
On December 19, 2024, France’s antitrust authority fined 12 appliance makers and distributors, including Whirlpool, a combined €611 million for price fixing between 2007 and 2014. The authority said the practices kept prices artificially high. Reuters reported Whirlpool did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The companies agreed to set prices higher between February 2007 and December 2014 amid growing competition from online retailers, the authority said in a statement Thursday.
PARIS, Dec 19 (Reuters) - France's antitrust agency has fined 12 household appliance makers and distributors, including Electrolux (ELUXb.ST), opens new tab, Whirlpool (WHR.N), opens new tab and LG (003550.KS), opens new tab, a total of 611 million euros ($635 million) for price fixing between 2007 and 2014.
On October 31, 2024, a proposed class of refrigerator owners asked a California federal court to approve a settlement over claims that Whirlpool sold refrigerators with a defect that caused food to spoil or become moldy. The available report excerpt does not describe the settlement terms or the court’s decision.
By Mike Curley ( October 31, 2024, 6:38 PM EDT) -- A proposed class of refrigerator owners is asking a California federal court to give the go-ahead to a settlement to resolve claims that Whirlpool Corp. sold refrigerators with a defect that caused food to spoil or go moldy....
ProPublica lists contributions by the Whirlpool Corporation Political Action Committee of $2,500 on July 30, 2021, $5,000 on March 21, 2022, and $5,000 on January 9, 2023. OpenSecrets reports the PAC’s 2019–2020 total raised was $142,000 and its party split was 35.19% to Democrats and 64.81% to Republicans.
35.19% to Democrats, 64.81% to Republicans</td> <td>$162,000</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Contributions to this PAC from individual donors of $200 or more (list donors)</td> <td>$99,833</td> </tr> </tbody> </table>
In a September 15, 2025 report, The Wall Street Journal said Whirlpool told the Trump administration that overseas competitors could be evading tariffs by undervaluing imports. Whirlpool cited federal import data showing declared customs values for numerous appliances began falling in June; the report did not establish that evasion occurred.
The appliance maker Whirlpool WHR -2.40%decrease; down pointing triangle is stirring up a new trade dispute, telling the Trump administration that its overseas competitors could be evading hefty tariff bills by undervaluing their imports.
Owners alleged Whirlpool’s AquaLift self-cleaning oven feature did not work as advertised. On November 5, 2019, the Sixth Circuit declined to allow an immediate appeal of the denial of class certification, finding no basis for quick review. The case was not certified as a class action.
The class would have included millions of consumers who bought AquaLift self-cleaning ovens. The owners allege the “new” and “innovative” self-cleaning feature didn’t work.