Trained Work Force Seeks Company

Newsday ^ | June 19, 2002 | CHARLES SHEEHAN -- Associated Press Writer

[Willie Green]

CLEARFIELD, Pa. -- When the 360 employees at FCI Electronics learned their plant would be closing in October, they didn't apply for new jobs -- they applied for a new company.

The workers are promoting themselves online and in trade magazines as a made-to-order work force in a last-ditch effort to remain neighbors in their small central Pennsylvania town.

[Willie Green]

Clearfield is a nice, little town.

I hope this unique approach works out for these good folks.

[Willie Green]

While the employee's website can be reached through Clearfield County's website at the link provided above, here is a direct link to www.clearfieldworks.com mentioned in the article.

Their web-server seems understandably a little slow, but it is a nicely designed website for their purpose.

The employees certainly show good sense and initiative in how to put this sort of thing together!

[TroutStalker]

Thanks for the post Willie. Clearfield is a nice location in the forested mountains of Pennsylvania. I wish them luck, although from past experience these small towns don't have much success in resurrecting a business once it folds.

[Willie Green]

I wish them luck, although from past experience these small towns don't have much success in resurrecting a business once it folds.

Yeah, Clearfield isn't in a totally isolated area. Twenty or so years ago, I used to live and work in DuBois which (going by memory) is about 15 or 20 minutes drive west of Clearfield. Going east from Clearfield, there's Phillipsburg, then State College. (Total distance DuBois to State College: about 70 miles). It's a fairly easy ride along I-80, a little more scenic taking old U.S. 322. Pretty good transportation for that neck of the woods, DuBois had a major UPS terminal that I assume is still there.

Just the same, when an employer goes down the tubes, there's simply not enough others around to pick up the slack. (Even though there are other employers in the area.)