Havco Wood Products reduces workforce by 60 full-time, 11 part-time employees

Havco Wood Products announced today that it will reduced the workforce at its Cape Girardeau plant by 60 full-time and 11 temporary employees.

The move is effectively immediately.

In a news release, Havco President and Chief Executive Officer Bruce Bader said the housing market was partly to blame for the decision.

"The workforce reduction being announced today is a result of the prolonged residential housing correction and overall macroeconomic conditions in the United States," Bader said. "The trucking industry has experienced a significant reduction in freight tonnage in recent months and as a result new orders for trailers have slowed. Accordingly, we are forced to reduce our workforce."

After the reduction, the workforce at the facility will be about 160 people. Additional job cuts are not expected.

Havco is the world's largest producer of laminated truck trailer flooring. In addition to the Cape Girardeau facility, Havco also operates a plant in Vonore, Tenn.

In the past 12 months, employees have been gradually laid off. Rather than continue that practice, the company decided to lay off employees at once.

The Cape Girardeau office was notified Wednesday morning that layoffs would occur. Those employees losing their jobs were notified during a Friday afternoon meeting.

Employees will not be offered a severance package and could be recalled to work in the office.

The layoffs are the second time in a two-year period that the company has been forced to reduce in large numbers its workforce in Cape Girardeau.

In January 2007, 65 full-time and 12 temporary employees lost their jobs at the local plant. Bader cited a weak economy then as a reason for the layoffs.

After those layoffs took effect, Havco employed about 250 people at the facility. However, some of those employees were eventually rehired by the company.