Tyson Foods to hire 200: Company has invested $20 million in Amherst plant

AMHERST — Tyson Foods plans to hire 200 more workers at its Cooper Foster Park Road plant, where the Arkansas-based company has invested $20 million over the past year. It plans to beef up its production lines and volume in Amherst, where sandwiches for brands such as Jimmy Dean are made, according to an announcement Thursday. "We are very excited to grow in Amherst," plant manager Brandy Shaw said. "We already employ 525 people in the facility and are looking forward to adding more team members to our Tyson family. We take great pride in being a positive member of this community." Job applications can be made at www.tysonfoods.com. All new hires will adhere to new guidelines to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Tyson said the additional positions are needed to meet growing demand for its protein products across the country. Mayor Mark Costilow said he is excited for the new jobs, and believes they will help Amherst's economy weather the COVID-19 pandemic. In terms of income tax withholding, Tyson was the city's third-largest business in 2019, behind the Nordson Corp.and the Amherst Schools. "It's a big industry that somewhat goes unnoticed," he said. "A lot of people don't know it's there." Teresa Gilles, director of Main Street Amherst, said she hopes the new hires will have ripple effects for other nearby businesses. New workers could bring more dollars to Amherst for dining and shopping, she said. "I think it will bring people who maybe aren't from Amherst to know the city a little better," she said. Tony Gallo, president of the Lorain County Chamber of Commerce, said the Tyson growth is "huge for Lorain County's economy and Northeast Ohio's economy." He said it makes sense for prepared food companies to invest right now — the COVID-19 pandemic revealed the need for a more robust supply. This spring, grocers' freezers ran short on many products that Tyson and its competitors make. Hourly pay at Tyson is above average — "these aren't going to be minimum wage," Costilow said — and he is eyeing a bump in payroll collections, which would "be money for streets, money to keep us rolling. It's going to be a fairly good sum." Even with the virus taking a toll on local businesses, Costilow intends to end the year with a $1 million budget carryover into 2021. He's also expecting collections in general to be down, but said Amherst, especially with the new Tyson jobs, to be better off than most cities. Costilow said he's toured the Cooper Foster plant to see sandwiches rolling down the line — millions of them each week. He described the facility as cold and sterile, "almost like a hospital," with rules and technology in place to keep food clean. Because of those precautions, it may be one of the safest spots in the county from COVID-19 exposure, he said. At the end of July, Tyson launched a new nationwide strategy to protect workers from the virus. It includes testing of both workers with and without symptoms. It also hired a chief medical officer and added almost 200 nurses and administrative support personnel to operations across the country. The nurses are helping with on-site testing and coordinating treatment for employees who get sick. "We are conducting temperature checks, wellness questionnaire before every shift, providing mandatory protective face masks to all team members, and implementing social distancing measures," Shaw said. Donnie King, Tyson Foods group president and chief administrative officer, said the plan uses data science to test a statistically sound sample of team members each week. "While the protective measures we've implemented in our facilities are working well, we remain vigilant about keeping our team members safe and are always evaluating ways to do more," he said. Like others, the company has struggled this year. Third-quarter earnings results showed sales down more than $880 million from 2019, while costs were up due to the pandemic. "Without a doubt, our third fiscal quarter was one of the most volatile and uncertain periods I've seen during my time in the industry," CEO Noel White said. "However, our commitment to team member health and safety and investments in operations and portfolio strategy effectively positioned us to weather unprecedented COVID-19 marketplace volatility while allowing us to support our farmers, ranchers and producers and meet our customers' needs." Contact Jason Hawk at (440) 329-7122 or news@lcnewspapers.com.