Oklahoma Loses, Gains Major Employers In 2006

Friday, December 29th 2006, 1:27 pm

By: News On 6

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- Plant closings and relocations cost Oklahoma thousands of jobs in 2006 but many are being replaced by a number of new companies moving to or expanding in the state.

Thousands lost jobs with the closing of a General Motors plant and Bridgestone-Firestone's Dayton Tire factory and 200 jobs moved to Houston when Anadarko bought Oklahoma City-based Kerr-McGee.

Also lost were an AOL call center in Oklahoma City, a Delta Faucet plant in Chickasha, Ethan Allen in Atoka and Eaton Corporation in Vinita.

But ConocoPhillips added more than 400 jobs in Bartlesville and plans to add another 300 in 2007. And Chesapeake, Devon and SandRidge Energy companies are adding several hundred jobs.

Chinese automaker Nanjing plans to add 500 jobs at a plant near Ardmore where it will reintroduce the British sports car brand M-G while Gatorade is to add 280 jobs at a bottling plant in Pryor.

Others include Mexican-food company Sigma Alimentos creating 200 jobs at a processing plant in Seminole and Texas-based Eagle Suspensions expects to hire 150 at a new manufacturing plant in Durant.