A furniture company in Mississippi fired all of its 2,700 employees via texts and emails just two days before Thanksgiving, instructing them not to show up for work the following day.
“At the instruction of the board of directors … we regret to inform you that due to unforeseen business circumstances, the company has been forced to make the difficult decision to terminate the employment of all its employees, effective immediately, on Nov. 21,” United Furniture Industries said in a message to staff.
The company makes couches and recliners for Simmons Upholstery, and the decision to let the staff go impacted workers in North Carolina, Mississippi, and California, including both truck drivers and factory workers.
“With the exception of over-the-road drivers that are out on delivery. Your layoff from the company is expected to be permanent and all benefits will be terminated immediately without provision of COBRA,” the company added.
The company is based in Okolona, Mississippi.
Drivers were informed that they would receive payment for the rest of the week and that they must “return equipment, inventory and delivery documents,” according to the New York Post.
“We regret that this difficult and unexpected situation has made this necessary,” the company said. “Thank you for your service and dedication.”
According to the Victorville Daily Press, a truck driver was arrested after taking furniture off a truck after receiving the message of the termination.
While it remains unclear why the company closed down so suddenly, it fired its chief executive, chief financial officer and executive vice president of sales during the summer months, FurnitureToday.com reported.
Only weeks later, 500 members of staff were let go at locations in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Verona, Mississippi, and Victorville, California.
“As soon as the property manager can provide a safe and orderly process for former employees to come and gather their belongings, they will do so,” UFI/Lane Corporate Communications told staff in an email, according to FreightWaves.com. “We are not certain of the timeframe for this but will communicate proactively.”
“It is not fair to the labourers who seriously worked so hard to be blindsided like this,” one staff member told the outlet. “It is not fair to the mom who just had a baby to wonder if she even has health insurance to cover it. It is not fair to the cancer patient in the midst of chemo about how to pay for her treatments.”
United Furniture Industries now faces at least three lawsuits on the federal level in the Northern District of Mississippi, with Toria Neal, who had worked at the company for eight years, filing a class-action suit alleging that the company let go all of its staff apart from “over-the-road drivers” shortly before midnight struck on 21 November.
She argues that staff didn’t receive the required notice 60 days in advance. The other two lawsuits have made the same case, according to The Daily Beast.
Jimmy Herring, 24, told the outlet that his reaction was “complete panic”.
“I didn’t know what to do, where to start,” the expectant father said.
“Some people don’t even have cellphones,” he said, referring to his colleagues. “They had to go to the plant and find out they don’t have a job anymore.”
Several people shared their frustration on Facebook.
“Pathetic!! My brother who is 64 years old was sent a text to say you no longer have a job!” one person in North Carolina wrote. “I hope these ppl have to endure the same treatment my brother and the rest of these employees will have to face now, especially being the start of the holidays!!!”
“Fantastic business ethics United/Lane,” TJ Martin wrote. “We appreciate the termination news while on vacation and at 11:30pm at night.”
“I have spoken with numerous co-workers and we all completely feel let down by a company we have dedicated our time and energy to for years and loved doing so in order to provide for our families,” he added.
The Independent has attempted to reach United Furniture Industries for comment.
