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Wake Forest did have
blue-collar jobs
One of the major shifts in the local
economy can be seen by comparing the lists of the top 10 employers in 1997 and
2007.
In 1997 three plants – Athey Products,
Weavexx and Schrader Bellows – together employed 606 men and women, 29 percent
of the 2,188 workers at the top 10 companies.
In 2007, although the workforce for
the top 10 had grown to 3,154, not one of the companies listed was a
manufacturer.
Schrader Bellows came to town as
Schrader Brothers in 1964 and manufactured pneumatic valves. With purchases and
consolidations, the company became Scovill and then was purchased by its main
competitor, Parker-Hannifin. The company closed its doors early in 2002. The
site is now proposed for a shopping center, a development that will be
considered by the town this year. The 1964 plant built by the Industrial
Development Corporation has been almost totally razed.
Athey Products, which manufactured
street sweepers, garbage trucks and other equipment, came to town soon after
Schrader. On Dec. 1, 2000, 125 people were laid off with no advance notice,
leaving only 32 on the payroll. Some people were called back for a short time,
but the plant closed that June. Jeff Ammons purchased the building in 2003 and
has turned it into the sports-retail-restaurant complex called The Factory.
Weavexx was the last industry to come
to town, arriving in 1972 as the Formex Division of Huyck Corporation. The
plant made fabrics for the paper industry. The announcement of closure was made
in January of 2003, and the plant’s doors were shut by the end of the year.
Weavexx does still maintain an office in Wake Forest. The complex of buildings
was razed last year to make way for the Glenn Boyd’s new car dealership,
Crossroads Nissan.
June 1997 major
employers
Sprint
Carolina Telephone Telecommunications 377
Wake
County Schools Education 362
The
Body Shop Nationally-based
skin 308
and
hair care products
Southeastern
Baptist Academic institution 260
Theological Seminary
Athey
Products Sanitation equipment 250
Weavexx
(Huyck USA) Paper machine
cloth 200
Schrader
Bellows Pneumatic
valves 156
Post
Software International Software
systems 100
Town
of Wake Forest Government 93
Wake
EMC Rural
electric co-op 82
June 2007 major
employers
Wake
County Schools Education 819
Wal-Mart
Super Center Grocery/retail 430
The
Body Shop Nationally-based
skin 355
and
hair care products
Embarq
(formerly Sprint) Telecommunications 335
Southeastern
Baptist Academic
institution 315
Theological Seminary
Super
Target Grocery/retail 315
Town
of Wake Forest Government 172
Lowes
Home Improvement Building/home
supplies 165
Chris
Leith Automotive
sales/service 143
Home
Depot Building/home
supplies 105
It is also interesting to note how the
number of employees for the school system and the town has increased in 10
years.
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