Window, door maker Jeld-Wen announces plans to close Yakima plant; 180 jobs affected

Window and door manufacturer Jeld-Wen will close its Yakima plant in April, a move affecting nearly 180 employees.

The Charlotte, N.C.-based company said in an emailed statement it’s closing the factory as part of a revised business plan focusing on “increasing service and quality to our customers.”

The plant has 179 employees, according to a listing on the state Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification website.

“The Yakima facility closure will support our value of improving daily by doing everything we can to advance the way we operate and do business,” the company said through a spokesman, Chris Benware.

Benware said Jeld-Wen has notified local and state officials of the closure. It has a program in place to move employees to its other facilities or provide outplacement services for those who will transition to new jobs, Benware said.

Jeld-Wen employs about 21,000 people worldwide, according to its website. On its corporate profile, Jeld-Wen says it operates 115 manufacturing plants in 19 countries, mainly in North America, Europe and Australia.

“Jeld-Wen’s end markets continue to grow, and our overall business remains strong,” Benware said.

Michelle Smith, the employer engagement analyst for the South Central Workforce Council, said she had contacted the company about organizing meetings where affected workers can get more information on job-hunting resources and training opportunities.

Jonathan Smith, executive director of the Yakima County Development Association, Yakima County’s economic development arm, said while no time is ideal to hear news of such a closure, at least it comes while the region has low unemployment.

“It’s definitely better to have it come when unemployment is at the level it is and there are manufacturers looking for (workers with) similar skill sets,” he said. “We hope that will help make the transition for the workers quick and painless as possible.”

Yakima County’s unemployment rate was 8.3 percent in December, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Jeld-Wen was based in Klamath Falls, Oregon, before moving its headquarters to Charlotte in 2015. The company has run a plant in Yakima since 1987. It operated out of its former plant at 1015 E. Lincoln Ave. for nearly two decades before relocating to its current site.

The company also once ran a fiber plant in White Swan, which closed in 2010.

Smith said it remains to be seen what the company will do with its Yakima plant, but he notes that his organization receives frequent inquiries from prospective companies looking for similar facilities.

“To have that building go back into another use is highly likely,” he said.