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Goodrich made no announcement of the firings and Akron's Beacon Journal neglected to report the biggest potential story in town. The company secrecy was deliberate policy, and so was the uncertainty created among those who stayed. "I hope some of them will look into their performance and realize they could do better," says J. Wade Miller, vice president for personnel and organization. But there could be less favorable results for Goodrich, and not only in the loss of local good will in a community that backed the company in its struggle with Northwest. One group of white-collar workers, seeking job security, has asked to join the United Rubber Workers, which already represents 12,500 Goodrich factory hands. The union is now considering a full-scale organizing drive among Goodrich's office employees.