I'm sure most here realize that the printings of the materials is not affected. But the company responsible for warehousing and shipping has suddenly closed their doors....
03/17/2008
AB&C facility in Ranson closed, some workers unpaid
By DAVE McMILLION
[email protected]
RANSON, W.Va. -A sign posted on a door Sunday at the AB&C Group mailing company in Jefferson County, W.Va., where about 150 people work, said the facility has closed and an employee said it was "quite evident" people had lost their jobs.
The sign posted on the AB&C Group building off Fairfax Boulevard read: "AB&C Group is closed until further notice. Employees will be contacted as information becomes available."
LaVern Armel, who has for worked more than 16 years at AB&C Group, said in a telephone interview Sunday night that paychecks were to be distributed Friday afternoon but workers were initially told they were not ready.
Later, workers were told there was some bad news, Armel said.
Workers were told there were some issues involving a refusal of a request for Chapter 11 reorganization, and that employees were to collect their personal belongings and clean out their desks, Armel said.
Employees were told to gather their belongings because they would not be able to get back in the building today, Armel said.
She said some of the workers who get direct deposit did get paid, however, others are waiting on at least two week's pay.
About 260 employees work at an AB&C Group office in Berkeley County, W.Va., and Armel said she believes those workers are in the same situation.
AB&C officials at neither location could be reached for comment.
Steve Christian, executive director of the Berkeley County Development Authority, said Sunday that he spent Friday night and Saturday working on the situation in an attempt to "salvage it."
Christian said he could not comment on the situation because he was still looking into the matter. But he said a situation in which workers are not getting their paychecks is always alarming.
AB&C Group Inc. has handled bulk mailing for various companies over the years.
In some cases, the customers use toll-free numbers to do business with organizations. The toll-free numbers ring into "call centers" operated by AB&C workers, who help customers with transactions.
Some of AB&C's clients over the years have been The Nature Conservancy, U.S. Golf Association, Healthy Directions, U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, National Geographic Society, National Rifle Association and Readers Digest.
The Berkeley County operation is in the Shockey Business Center in a former General Motors plant off W.Va. 9 west of Martinsburg.
The company's presence in the Eastern Panhandle started in Ranson, but company officials announced in 2006 they would move all the Ranson operations to Berkeley County.
In a move to create more space for the growing company, AB&C Group officials said at the time they would consolidate their Ranson operations with operations in Winchester, Va., and another operation in Charles Town, W.Va., and move them to the former GM plant.
As it turned out, AB&C Group had not moved all its operations to Berkeley County yet and it still has a call center at the Ranson location, Jane Peters, executive director of the Jefferson County Development Authority, said Sunday.
Peters said she had not learned in detail what was going on at AB&C and was going to start looking into it today.
Christian said he had not seen any indications of trouble for the company.
There was some turnover in local management, but that can happen with any company and not necessarily indicate problems, Christian said.
Armel said AB&C has been a nice place to work and company officials offered flexible scheduling to people who were trying to go to school or who were working in other ways to improve their lives.
"I feel sorry for a lot of the girls that are single mothers," Armel said.
