Schwebel Baking Company looks to enter an accelerated bankruptcy proceeding as part of its strategy to attract new ownership for the century-old business, according to paperwork filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court, Youngstown.

The potential for a new buyer was revealed when U.S. District Judge Donald C. Nugent rescheduled a status conference involving attorneys representing Schwebel’s and 10 International Brotherhood of Teamster locals. Spearheaded by Teamsters Local No. 52 out of Valley View, their attorneys filed suit against Schwebel’s on Monday seeking a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction with a motion to compel arbitration.

The move was in response to Schwebel’s June 17 announcement it was shuttering its baked goods operations and outlets in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York.

The sides agreed to pause litigation until 9 a.m. July 15 when they will meet with U.S. District Judge David A. Ruiz, who was assigned the case.

“Defendant Schwebel Baking Company indicated that it may need to go through an expedited Chapter 11 bankruptcy process to achieve a sale of its business to a potential buyer,” court documents say. “There is presently a potential buyer for Defendant Schwebel Baking Company, and the parties to this litigation are in discussions to determine whether such a purchase is feasible.”

In its Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Acts notice, Schwebel’s was expected to lay off its workers starting this week. However, according to a company representative, Schwebel’s operations are continuing.

Schwebel’s has 364 workers in Youngstown, 109 in Hebron, Ohio, and 298 in the tristate area, who include delivery drivers in addition to sales and store personnel. WARN paperwork lists 673 union workers affected.

“Schwebel’s values its employees above all else,” the company said in an email. “The company appreciates that the union is doing what it believes is in the best interest of its members. We are talking to union leadership and hope to resolve this dispute without litigation.”

As of early Wednesday afternoon, no Chapter 11 bankruptcy filings involving Schwebel’s had appeared in the federal court’s online system.

In its action against Schwebel’s, the Teamsters claim its members no longer receive company-provided healthcare, pension contributions and other benefits.

Teamster leadership said it learned June 23 from Schwebel’s Vice President of Sales Jim Behmer that “the Company would no longer honor its contractual obligations.”

Schwebel’s makes branded and private-label bakery products at its bakeries in Youngstown and Hebron. Its bread, buns and rolls are distributed to retail, grocery, food service and institutional customers. The company also operates outlet stores.

Schwebel’s has faced significant operational and financial constraints for many years, the company said last month. These challenges include “aging manufacturing facilities and equipment, costly labor contracts and pension obligations, and consumer trends depressing demand for traditional bakery and bread products.”

The company also noted it made “comprehensive efforts to explore all financing and strategic alternatives, including the sale of its business and operations, as well as making a request to temporarily defer certain pension obligations to preserve liquidity for essential improvements to the manufacturing facilities.”