Remington Employees Get Furlough Details, Include 11 Unpaid Days Off
Employees at Remington Arms have been given the dates that they'll be furloughed, and they include 11 days without pay between now and the end of the year.
There are two periods of furlough. Period one is in November:
Workers will be off the job without pay from November 13th through the 17th along with November 20, 21 and 22nd. They will be given paid holidays at Thanksgiving, November 23rd and 24th. They will return to work on Monday, November 27th.
Phase two is the week between Christmas and New Year.
Employees will be furloughed December 27th, 28 and 29th. They will receive company paid holiday on December 23rd and 24th. They will return to work on January 2, 2018.
Employees tell WIBX that New York State Department of Labor will be meeting with union representatives on Wednesday. Union reps are trying to set up a day when unemployment specialists will be available on-site for workers.
Last week, employees were informed by the union to prepare for the work furlough. Details of the furlough were expected this week. A furlough is considered similar to a temporary company shutdown, which has occurred several times over the years at Remington. In some cases employees can collect unemployment benefits to offset the reduction in wages. Unlike a layoff, employees keep their jobs and retain their benefits.
There's no word on any furloughs or layoffs in Remington's other facilities across the country, including their new facility in Huntsville, Alabama, which seems to be growing. Original plans at that facility were projected to double Ilion's workforce by 2021.
According to AL.com, company officials projected over 1000 employees there in 2017; 1258 by 2018, nearly 1500 by 2019; 1700 by 2020 and 1868 employees by 2021.
Check out this tour of Remington's Hunstville facility.