© 2025 WEKU
NPR for North, Central and Eastern Kentucky
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Business and the Economy

State to Provide Assistance for Jobless Fruit of the Loom Workers

kentucky.com

More than 600 people will be looking for work following a summertime plant closure in southern Kentucky. They could benefit from group and individual job counseling offered by the state.

Beginning in June, the Fruit of the Loom factory will start laying off hundreds of employees.   The company is moving its textile operations to Honduras to save money and plans to close the Jamestown plant in phases from June through December.  State Department of Workforce Investment Commissioner Beth Brinly says counseling will be available in areas of employment, training, and personal finances.  

"We're very hopeful that they can find jobs.  They may not find them in the exact community that they are working in today," said Brinly.  "They may need to work in another city or in another county in order to find employment."

Since the job loss is due to foreign trade activity, Brinly says relocation costs and travel to training may be reimbursable.  

"Given that the plant of the work of the plant is going to Honduras, this may qualify as a trade event, so it opens up a whole nother set of services to customers," said Brinly.

She calls it a more "robust" set of services compared to those offered to traditional dislocated workers.

Business and the Economy
WEKU depends on support from those who view and listen to our content. There's no paywall here. Please support WEKU with your donation.
Related Content