Trail King official: Hike in N.D. jobs has ‘no implication’ on local workforce

The addition of 40 jobs to Trail King’s plant in West Fargo has “no implication” for the company’s workforce numbers in Mitchell, according to Trail King President Carol Lowe.

Lowe confirmed Thursday in an interview with The Daily Republic that the company will add 40 jobs to the North Dakota plant to handle an increase in demand for “live bottom” trailers, which typically use a conveyor belt to dump loose materials such as asphalt, sand and gravel.

Lowe said the additional jobs at West Fargo are temporary and contingent upon continued higher demand.

Live-bottom trailers are not manufactured at the Mitchell plant, Lowe said. The company is moving some other products from Fargo to Mitchell to provide work for the employees here, but no additional employees will be hired locally.

Lowe rejected rumors that have been circulating about a possible removal of Trail King’s operations from Mitchell.

“As long as Carlisle is involved with Trail King,” said Lowe, referring to Trail King’s parent company, “I don’t see anything that would say we would not be in Mitchell.”

The national economic recession has severely impacted Trail King and its work- force. The company has laid off hundreds of workers since late 2008 and closed a plant in Pennsylvania.

Excluding the 40 temporary employees being hired in West Fargo, the company now has 106 employees at its West Fargo location and 221 at Mitchell, Lowe said. Prior to the recession and the layoffs, Trail King had upwards of 400 employees at Mitchell alone.

Lowe said the company’s economic outlook remains grim for the near future.

“We think in 2010 we will see an increase in volume, but it’s going to be very small,” she said. “We really don’t see a meaningful recovery for the trailer industry until 2011.”

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