More Than 350 Jobs Cut at Hanesbrands DC & Kayser-Roth Changes in North Carolina
Facility changes in North Carolina spell big job losses at a Hanesbrands DC and at Kayser-Roth, the underwear and hosiery company known for making the No Nonsense, Hue and Burlington brands.
Champion
Hanesbrands confirmed that the contract with National Distribution Center that ends this year won’t be renewed. The contractor operated at a section within a Hanesbrands distribution center in High Point, N.C. With the contract ending, National Distribution Center notified that state in a WARN, or Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification, notice that it will lay off all 217 of its employees who work there, effective Dec. 31.
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The 340,000-square-foot distribution center on Eagle Hill Drive was responsible for handling Champion products. Hanesbrands, whose own workers continue to work at the site, said it plans to keep the building open.
Last month, the rival to Gildan, which is also cutting North Carolina jobs, announced a plan to look at options for Champion after activist investor Barington Capital outlined a list of demands to improve performance at the innerwear giant. Hanesbrands is carrying about $3.6 billion in debt which the hedge fund wants it to cut down to size. Many companies pay off debt by selling assets that don’t fit into their core business. Because Hanesbrands is best known as a close-to-skin specialist brands with top brands incuding Hanes, Bali, Playtex and Maidenform, Champion might be better off with a new owner.
Last month, Hanesbrands closed its lone remaining U.S. cut-and-sew facility. The company has struggled to cut inventory when wholesale partners reduce orders to deal with shifting shopping patterns. For the second quarter ended July 1, Hanebrands posted a 3 percent gain in innerwear sales from year-ago levels, but activewear sales dropped 19 percent over the same period.
Hanesbrands is set to report third-quarter earnings on Nov. 9.
Kayser-Roth
In a WARN notice filed on Sept. 23, Kayser-Roth Corp. informed the state it would permanently lay off at least 126 workers at its Lumberton, N.C. facility. It expects the job cuts to be done by Dec. 22, 2023.
The company used the Lumberton facility to manufacture hosiery for the No Nonsense and Hue brands. and distribute the product from the site as well. Kayser-Roth also manufactures socks, leggings, tops, sleepwear and loungewear. The job cuts will only affect the Lumberton facility’s manufacturing employees while distribution workers will keep their positions.
Plant manager Zachary Greene told Business North Carolina that the facility is putting people out of work because fewer women are wearing pantyhose and tights. He also cited increasing manufacturing automation.
A spokesperson for Kayer-Roth did not respond to a request for comment by press time.
