Quiet but optimistic in Evart

Sally Barber | Cadillac News EvartŐs Collins & Aikman manufacturing plant will likely change hands in the near future and escape closure. Previously laid off workers are being called back to help fulfill orders from the already shuttered Americus, Ga. plant.

CADILLAC NEWS

EVART — Blue skies stretched over the town of Evart Friday, ending a pivotal week on an optimistic note.

For months, tension has covered the city as it waited for news on whether its major employer, the auto parts manufacturer Collins & Aikman, would close. At stake — 440 jobs representing the lifeblood of the community.

Members of UAW Local 2270 were asked to make a heavy decision this week by a potential buyer of the plant from the bankrupt C&A. The interested buyer, Illinois-based Flex-N-Gate, presented a contract package that cut wages and benefits.

Tuesday and Wednesday workers voted approving the contract 283 to 157.

“Some are happy and some are mad,” said Charlie Jones. Both Jones and his wife are employed at the factory.

“Everyone is dealing with it,” he said. “We knew we had to do it.”

Gregg Sherman, a member of the local’s bargaining committee now wants to see the workforce move forward.

“We were a factory without a company and needed a company to buy us,” he said. “It’s like a corporate yard sale. I sympathize with the people who are unhappy, but we have to go on. It’s survival.”

Contract details are not being released and there’s plenty of buzz on the streets as to the cost of the deal to workers, but few answers.

“The talk is (that) there has been no talk,” said resident Russ Atherton.

“Things have been pretty quiet around town as far as information.”

Amy Kitchen manages a Wesco gas station and convenience store located across from the C&A plant. Plant employees provide a consistent source of revenue for the business. Until the vote count, workers themselves seemed unsure of which side their co-workers would take, according to Kitchen.

“A lot of people are relieved that they will still have their jobs,” she said. “It was stressful for us.”

Downtown business owner BJ Northon hopes it marks a turning point for the town.

“For the first seven years I was in the community I worked at the plant,” he said. “When I moved in, it was Evart Products and American Motors and it was going gung-ho. They had the most employees in its history, 1,500 to 1,600 and there was a lot of overtime. American Motors was bought by Chrysler and it’s been going downhill since.”

The decline is not particular to the Osceola County town, he pointed out. The nation is suffering from shortsighted decisions and greed, he said.

“It’s not just happening in little Evart,” Sherman echoed. “It’s happening in the nation. People have to wake up. It’s time America starts taking care of its own.”

Any agreement reached between Collins & Aikman and the prospective buyer remains subject to review by the bankruptcy court.

Sbarber@cadillacnews.com | (231) 775-NEWS