Country Coach calls 100 people back to work
JUNCTION CITY, Ore. --- Many laid-off employees from Country Coach have been waiting for a call that seemed to never come.
Until Tuesday.
"I have just been sitting at home," said Cheri Weber, a purchasing agent for Country Coach. "My house has never been cleaner! My closets, my attic, everything!"
Weber was one of the last to be laid off in December -- and now is one of the first hired back.
"I was one of the die-hard people that never thought Country Coach would go under for good," Weber said.
Country Coach Marketing Vice President Matt Howard said for many employees, the RV maker was more than just a job. Many employees were counting on the business to return.
"Some people thought, I don't just want any job, I want what I had at Country Coach," Howard said.
On its first day back, the company already got new orders in. Howard said vendors and customers are happy to see Country Coach is back.
But the entire ordeal has taught managers to be more conservative, Howard said.
"If we grow -- no, when we grow -- it will be because there is a proven source of business we can grow into," he said.
The company is on a one RV per week production schedule that will start April 6, a schedule that will change as demand for RVs change. The company has long-term goals of returning to its original size but will continue to be cautiously optimistic.
As for the Chapter 11 bankruptcy case, Howard said there will be several more hearings, the next of which is scheduled for April 13.
