Black & Decker to close Fort Mill tool plant, triggering nearly 200 layoffs

John Marks
·2 min read
2

Stanley Black & Decker told the state that it plans to close its Fort Mill manufacturing plant near Carowinds. That decision means the loss of 192 jobs.

The company filed a WARN notice on Monday with the South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce. That document is required when companies plan large closures or layoffs that will impact workers. The 4260 Pleasant Road facility will be closed between May 10 and the end of the year, according to the notice.

Stanley Black & Decker makes DEWALT cordless power tools in Fort Mill.

In 2017 the company announced it would move into a 345,000-square-foot facility in Lakemont Business Park, across Carowinds Boulevard from the Carowinds amusement park. That move would bring a $31 million investment and 500 new jobs, York County economic development officials said at the time.

Stanley Black & Decker officials could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday.

The new layoffs filing is the 11th WARN notice in South Carolina this year, but the first for any company in the Rock Hill region.

This Google Earth image shows the view from the Carowinds side of Carowinds Boulevard, of the Stanley Black & Decker site in Fort Mill. The plant there will close later this year.
This Google Earth image shows the view from the Carowinds side of Carowinds Boulevard, of the Stanley Black & Decker site in Fort Mill. The plant there will close later this year.

It’s the second largest in terms of employees impacted in the state, behind only a MAHLE Behr closure in Charleston County at 466 workers.

About the Stanley Black & Decker layoffs

The Fort Mill plant closure follows an “enterprise-wide assessment” of the company’s manufacturing network and will happen in four phases starting this spring, according to the WARN notice sent by company global vice president of manufacturing operations Steve Maddocks.

The first 158 workers will lose their jobs by May 10, followed by 10 more on July 15, according to the notice. A dozen each will be gone by Sept. 15, and by the end of the year.

“At the end of the process, all positions and jobs at the facility will be permanently eliminated, although it is possible that some employees will be offered transfers to another area,” Maddocks wrote.

About Stanley Black & Decker

According to its website, Stanley Black & Decker began in 1843 and is headquartered in Connecticut. The Fortune 500 company includes brands like DeWalt, Craftsman, Stanley, Cub Cadet, Hustler and Troy-Bilt.

It has more than 50,000 employees.

Dublin, Pennsylvania, company Alpha Z Charlotte Industrial owns the Stanley Black & Decker building in Fort Mill. It’s on almost 37 acres and also includes an address on Rubin Center Drive.

The building was constructed in 2018. The owners bought the site in 2019 for $28.8 million, according to county land records.