American & Efird Closing Eliminates 111 Jobs

BY SARA PITZER
SALISBURY POST

American & Efird, Inc., a subsidiary of Ruddick Corporation, announced Monday it will close its Salisbury plant at 1310 Richard St. over the next two months, eliminating 111 jobs.

Robert W. Edwards Jr., vice president for human resources, based in Mount Holly, said employees learned the details of their severance packages Monday, the same day they learned their plant would close.

According to a written statement given to employees, the closing will take place gradually, beginning now and ending April 2. Any workers who are released before April 2 will continue to receive their regular pay and benefits until the termination date.

The severance package offers employees one week's pay for each year of service at American and Efird, up to a maximum of 13 weeks, plus an additional four weeks pay for employees who stay with the company until their release date.

The company has offered employees an opportunity to apply for open positions at its other facilities.

''I think we could take as many as 75 or 80 people. There's been a lot of interest, which is good,'' Edwards said. ''We are going to follow up on it. It is hard to move your roots sometimes.''

Commuting to Gastonia could be hard. An employee, who asked not to be identified, said, ''I've heard it takes at least an hour. It might sound OK at first, but then you'd have to buy new tires and have things on your car fixed.''

In a statement written for the public *itand employees, Edwards explained the company's reason for closing the Salisbury plant. American & Efird acquired the assets of Threads USA in 1996. A large dyeing, finishing and distribution facility in Gastonia came with the acquisition. American & Efird bought the Salisbury plant from Standard-Coosa-Thatcher in June 1998.

''As A&E merged the two businesses, it became apparent that the most efficient use of company assets would be to combine the operations of Salisbury into the Gastonia plant.''

Later Monday, Edwards elaborated: ''We had three dye houses and we didn't really need three dye plants.'' The Gastonia facility has enough space to absorb the Salisbury operations and allow for future growth.

The Gastonia facility will also serve as the regional distribution center.

Edwards said news of closing the Salisbury plant probably came as a surprise to employees, although ''running schedules have not been what we desired here for some time.''

One employee, who asked not to be identified, said, ''We made jokes about it. We said it's coming down the railroad. First Cone and Frito Lay and we're next, but we didn't really mean it. It hasn't really sunk in.''

Edwards said the plant closing had nothing to do with foreign competition. ''It was something that needed to be done for a while, and the reason it went this way was the larger facility in Gastonia.''

Edwards said he didn't want to do anything like announcing a plant closing again. ''I've been with this company 31 years, in human resources 25 years, and this is the toughest thing I have ever done.''

An employee who spoke with the Post said the closing would present special hardships for families with several members working at the plant. And he is worried about what will happen about insurance for people with pre-existing problems.

He is not too optimistic about the job market, either. ''There's going to be 1,000 or 1,100 people looking for jobs,'' he said.

Noting the recent flurry of plant closings in Rowan and Iredell counties, Edwards said the same thing is happening in Gaston County and all over North Carolina, but he does not believe that means American & Efird will be leaving the state.

''We still manufacture just about all of the thread that is sold overseas right here in the U.S. This is just good business, getting the most efficient use out of the companies and relocating to the larger facility in Gastonia. We're here,'' he said. ''We're going to stay. We have to fine tune, that's all.''

The employee who spoke with the Post said, ''We'll have to wait and see and trust in the Lord. We have a lot of Christians in the plant. And (Plant Manager) Neal Miller is a good person. We'll have to trust the Lord.''