Here’s a roundup of news briefs from around Southwest and Southside. Send yours for possible inclusion to news@cardinalnews.org.
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Manufacturer to expand Rocky Mount site, add 50 jobs
A manufacturer of exterior building products will invest $4.9 million to expand its Rocky Mount location, creating 50 new jobs, the governor’s office said Thursday.
Cornerstone Building Brands was created in 2018 by merging NCI Building Systems and Ply Gem Building Products. Its Franklin County location makes Ply Gem doors and windows. The company’s other products include vinyl windows, doors and siding; stone veneer; and metal roofing, wall systems and accessories.
“Cornerstone Building Brands is proud to continue advancing American manufacturing by expanding our operations in Rocky Mount where we have a terrific team,” Cornerstone Building Brands CEO Gunner Smith said in a news release from Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s office.
A company spokesperson acknowledged a reporter’s inquiry but was unable to provide more information, including the Rocky Mount location’s current number of employees and a timeline for the job creation, by deadline Thursday.
Youngkin approved a $100,000 state grant to assist Franklin County with the expansion. The company’s job creation will be eligible for assistance from a state consulting program.
Cary, North Carolina-based Cornerstone Building Brands has more than 90 manufacturing plants across the United States and more than 100 warehouses, distribution centers and retail outlets, according to its website.
“This expansion demonstrates the positive momentum happening in Rocky Mount,” Rocky Mount Mayor Holland Perdue said in the news release. “Businesses are thriving, jobs are being created, and our community continues to move forward.”
— Matt Busse
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Dozens of layoffs hit Martinsville company ahead of Christmas
Food sanitation contractor Fortrex will lay off 68 workers once it ceases operation in Martinsville on Friday, according to a notice sent to the state.
Based in Georgia, Fortrex provides sanitation services to food production facilities. The company has been contracted to Martinsville’s Monogram Food Solutions since August 2009.
Layoffs will only affect Fortrex and not Monogram Food Solutions.
Monogram Food Solutions will continue its operations but will receive sanitation services from another company. On its site, Monogram describes having 700 team members at its Martinsville location.
“Recently we received unforeseen notice from Monograms Solutions – Martinsville that it has decided to end the contract at the Martinsville, Virginia location meaning that Fortrex will cease services at this plant,” reads part of a Dec. 2 letter from Fortrex’s human resources coordinator, Nicholas Wallace, to Virginia Works, the state’s workforce development agency.
Employers are required to provide advance notice of mass layoffs under the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification, or WARN, Act.
In separate letters distributed to employees and dated Dec. 2, Wallace described the contract termination as “unforeseen.”
“The termination of Fortrex’s contract will affect all 68 Fortrex team members working at the Monogram Food Solutions Martinsville plant, located at 200 Knauss Drive, Martinsville,” reads part of the letter sent to staff. “The company will ensure that you will be paid all earned wages and agreed upon benefits on the next regularly scheduled pay date.”
The letter also states that some eligible employees will have the chance to transfer to other Fortrex locations.
— Dean-Paul Stephens