Job Cuts Expected At Atoka Furniture Factory

Wednesday, September 6th 2006, 6:10 pm

By: News On 6

ATOKA, Okla. (AP) -- Furniture manufacturer Ethan Allen Interiors announced plans Wednesday to convert its factory in Atoka to a distribution center, a move that could cost several hundred employees their jobs.

Company officials could not immediately confirm how many jobs in Atoka would be affected, but a city official estimated more than 200 jobs would be lost. That would leave about 50 for the distribution center.

Ethan Allen will stop production in Atoka and at a factory in Spruce Pine, North Carolina, with a total job loss of 465 employees.

The company says it will move production to other US factories and selected offshore vendors.

Located in southeastern Oklahoma, Atoka has a population of about 3,000.