Toledo Blade – More than half of Whirlpool Corp.’s U.S. manufacturing employees are in Ohio, but company officials say many of those jobs are being threatened by foreign companies selling washing machines in the United States for less than they cost to make.

Late last year, Whirlpool filed petitions with the U.S. Commerce Department and the U.S. International Trade Commission alleging that large residential washers made in South Korea and Mexico were being sold for less than their fair value in the United States. In the complaint, the company said the imports have “compromised the economics of Whirlpool’s U.S. production of subject washers to the point where Whirlpool’s ability to maintain its commitment to expanded U.S. production is very much at risk.”

The Commerce Department last week issued a finding that sided with Whirlpool, proposing duties of as much as 71 percent on washers imported from South Korea.