S&S Cycle reduces workforce
S&S Cycle announced that is has cut 60 workers this month. Company President Brett Smith announced the cut backs Friday through voluntary separation and layoffs, according to a story by the Associated Press.
“This was a very, very hard decision personally,” Smith said. “People I’ve known for years were impacted.”
Smith said the economic slump has hurt sales of the company’s high-performance engine parts and engines for motorcycles.
“In the grand scheme of things, we make a product that people don’t need to have,” he said.
All but two of the cuts were made at the company’s Viola site rather than the La Crosse location, Smith said. On Aug. 4, the company offered voluntary separation packages that 33 employees accepted, Smith said. They began leaving the company Aug. 8. Another 27 employees, primarily in production and manufacturing, were laid off earlier this week, Smith said.
“We’re doing everything we can to become lean and consolidate our efforts for future long-term employment,” Smith said. “We don’t expect to be in this position forever.”
The company’s core business of bolt-on, high-performance, aftermarket components still is strong, he said, but there’s less disposable income for parts.
