McALESTER, Okla. (AP) — A company that manufactures and distributes windows plans to shut down its McAlester plant, leaving 252 people out of work.
Simonton Windows officials anticipate closing the plant by the end of the year, spokeswoman Kathy Ziprik told the McAlester News-Capital for a story published Friday (http://bit.ly/r2xxdH ).
The first group of terminations are expected to occur on Nov. 23 and will affect 184 workers. A second group is set for Dec. 9, according to a letter from plant officials.
Machinists, managers, maintenance technicians, operators, traffic administrators, truck drivers and various support personnel are among those losing their jobs.
Simonton makes new construction and replacement windows and also distributes the finished product. The McAlester plant opened in 2002.
The quality of work done at the plant was not a factor in the company's decision to close it, Ziprik said.
"The quality of the workforce is wonderful," she said. "We appreciate their long-term dedication."
Simonton Windows had anticipated long-term success in McAlester, but no one anticipated the current economic conditions, she said.
"We are doing well as a company, but part of the reason is we have reached efficiency," Ziprik said.
Simonton Windows also has plants in California, Illinois and three in West Virginia, she said. Work done at the McAlester plant will be consolidated into those facilities.
Employees will be paid for unused vacation and receive medical, dental and long-term disability insurance through the end of the last month in which they are employed, Ziprik said.
