VOLUME 23 NUMBER 44
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JANUARY 26, 2018
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JONES: Abrupt closure violated federal worker act Elected officials seeks legal action over
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By Valerie J. Morgan
tate Rep. Vernon Jones said that he is working with city officials to seek legal action against Sam’s Club. Jones said Sam’s Club violated the Federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) when it abruptly closed the Stonecrest store on Jan. 11, and could face penalties for failure to properly notify workers and city officials of the massive layoffs. “This has been sloppy from Day 1,” Jones said. “Sam’s Club violated the federal WARN Act. I will be talking with legal counsel, officials, the community as well as employees affected. They failed to properly notify the state and local government, which is a direct violation of the federal WARN Act.” Jones said officials of Walmart, the parent company of Sam’s Club, never mentioned the “WARN” when questioned about the shutdown during a town hall that he held on Jan. 16 to discuss the closing. Glenn Wilkins, public affairs and government relations manager for Walmart, said there was no prior warning to workers and the public that the store was closing. He said the store was underperforming financially.
A line of automobiles snaked through the parking lot as a security guard told customers the store was closed on Jan. 11. Photos by Travis Hudgons/OCG News
“We notified the associates when they came in and we notified members when they came in as well. No one had advance notice, said Wilkins. Wilkins said the employees are being paid for the next 60 days. They’re getting double pay for the next two weeks. They will get a 2017 bonus, plus a one-time bonus. He said some employees were offered the chance to work at another Sam’s Club or Walmart. Keith Lowe, market manager for Sam’s Club, notified state officials and the city of Lithonia of the Sam’s Club’s closing. The letter, dated Jan. 11, was sent to Jackie Griffin, Rapid Response Director, Workfore Division, Georgia Dept. of Economic Development, and Lithonia Mayor Deborah Jackson.
State Rep. Vernon Jones conducts town hall on Jan. 16.
A guide to advance notice of closings and layoffs OTE: These are excerpts from the Federal Worker N Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act: There is no Georgia law requiring advance notice of layoffs. Employers are encouraged to contact the department to take advantage of assistance available to workers to be laid off. However, the Federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) was enacted by the United States Congress on August 4, 1988, and became effective on February 4, 1989. WARN offers protection to workers, their families, and communities by requiring employers to provide notice 60 days in advance of covered plant closings and covered mass layoffs. This notice must be provided to either affected workers or their representatives (e.g., a labor union); to the State dislocated SEE WARN, page 6
SEE SAM’S CLUB, page 6
Stonecrest Babies “R” Us is closing
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No annual profit for corporation since 2013
he Stonecrest Babies “R” Us store is closing as part of the corporation’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization plan, officials said. The restructuring calls for the closing of up to 182 stores nationally and abroad to ease debt. According to reports, the stores haven’t had an annual profit since 2013, losing much of its share of the toy market to mass merchants such as Walmart, Target and Amazon. A manager at the Stonecrest location said the store would begin its liquidation on Feb. 8, closing for good by April. The company is holding going-out-of-business sales at 25 stores in the United Kingdom. Nicole Hayes, a spokesperson for the corporation, said initially, there was some confusion over the corporation’s announcement concerning the store at Stonecrest. Hayes confirmed, however, the Stonecrest Toys “R” Us™ would
Photo by Travis Hudgons/OCGNews
remain open for now but the Stonecrest Babies “R” Us™ is closing. Toys “R” Us™ , which owns Babies “R” Us, is headquartered in Wayne, NJ. In addition to the Stonecrest store’s liquidation and others in the
U.S., the company is holding goingout-of-business sales at 25 stores in the United Kingdom. "The reinvention of our brands requires that we make tough decisions about our priorities and focus," Toys R Us Chief Executive Dave Brandon said in a Jan. 23 letter
posted on the company's website. Toys "R" Us, Inc. was founded by Charles P. Lazarus, who started in the children’s products industry by launching a furniture store in 1948. Lazarus began offering toys at the store in 1957 and eventually shifted his focus to the toy business, launching Toys “R” Us™ in 1957. At its peak, there were 800 Toys “R” Us stores nationally and around 800 globally. The company also launched Babies “R” Us and the now defunct Kids “R” Us. The company owns or licenses 866 Toys “R” Us and Babies “R” stores in the United States and Puerto Rico, more than 750 international stores and more than 245 licensed stores in 37 countries and jurisdictions. The company reported a net loss of $164 million in the quarter ended April 29, 2017. It lost $ 126 million in the same period in the prior year, according to reports.