The Georgia Department of Labor and other agencies are planning workshops and a job fair for people who will lose their current jobs when SpartanNash closes its Statesboro grocery distribution center.
The Department of Labor's Statesboro Career Center, headed by manager Jennifer Bradley, is working with Ogeechee Technical College and the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act agency in Savannah on plans for these services, Georgia Department of Labor Communications Director Sam Hall said Thursday.
"There will be a series of meetings to decide basically what services we can all come together to provide to the employees and, of course, the employer," Hall said. "While everything is still tentative, the initial plans are that we will provide services there on-site for the company."
Sixty employees will be affected by the permanent shutdown targeted for May 28, an official at the SpartanNash corporate headquarters in Grand Rapids, Mich., confirmed earlier this week.
The on-site assistance include helping the employees file claims for unemployment benefits and receiving an explanation of the range of re-employment services the Department of Labor can provide, Hall said. Examples of those services include workshops on job searches, resume writing and interviewing for jobs.
Additionally, the Labor Department is working the with other agencies to plan a job fair specifically for the SpartanNash employees, he said.
"Already some employers in the area are letting us know that they want to have an opportunity to meet and interview some of these employees that are losing their jobs, so some of them we feel very confident will be absorbed into other companies in the area," Hall said.
The dates for the job fair and other programs will be announced when the plans are firmed up, he said.
OTC explains role
Ogeechee Technical College confirmed its involvement in assistance for the displaced workers with an emailed statement from OTC Vice President for Student Affairs Ryan Foley.
"Ogeechee Tech will offer sessions for the displaced employees of SpartanNash, where they will be given information on programs of study, financial aid, and admissions," Foley said. "Our goal is to assist those who may need additional education and skills to be marketable in another industry where job openings may exist."
Additionally, he said, the college is "working with the Department of Labor to reach all of the SpartanNash employees who have a desire to seek new employment which may require additional training."
In-company openings
The affected employees include 20 truck drivers, 21 order selectors and three lift operators, as well as some mechanics, clerks and supervisors, an operations manager and an inventory control person, said Meredith Gremel, vice president for corporate affairs and communications at SpartanNash headquarters. The company is offering the order selectors and lift operators the option to transfer to its Columbus, Ga., distribution center, but understands that such a move can be difficult, she said Tuesday.
Other displaced employees could apply for jobs at other SpartanNash facilities, Gremel said, but the one in Columbus is nearest to Statesboro.
The warehousing and refrigeration complex on U.S. Highway 301 South in Statesboro was built in 1972 by T.J. Morris Co., a Statesboro-based food distributor that served independent grocery stores. Nash Finch Company bought the T.J. Morris business in 1996 but leased the property, which is still owned by T.J. Morris' heirs.
Spartan Stores, based near Grand Rapids, and Nash Finch Co., based in Minneapolis, Minn., merged in November 2013 to form SpartanNash. Self-reported as the fifth-largest food distribution company in the United States, Spartan Nash in 2015 leaped onto the Fortune 500 list of the most valuable U.S. companies by total revenue, ranking 359th.
The corporation never replaced the signs on the Statesboro plant, so it is still known locally as Nash Finch.
Herald reporter Al Hackle may be reached at (912) 489-9458.