‘Destruction is too great.’ All employees laid off after fire guts Hermiston potato chip plant

Cory McCoy
·2 min read

Two weeks after a fire devastated a Tri-Cities area food plant, the company has announced it will be laying off all of the site’s employees.

The Hermiston Shearer’s Foods plant, which produced chips and salty snacks for private brands, caught fire after a propane boiler exploded on Feb. 22. The plant quickly became fully engulfed, with firefighters from several departments battling the blaze for hours.

The remains of Shearer’s Foods, Hermiston, lay twisted and smoldering Feb. 23, 2022, a day after an explosion and fire. Shearer’s Foods CEO Bill Nictakis announced Tuesday, March 8, the company cannot quickly rebuild the facility and is ending the employment of the 230 people who worked there.
The remains of Shearer’s Foods, Hermiston, lay twisted and smoldering Feb. 23, 2022, a day after an explosion and fire. Shearer’s Foods CEO Bill Nictakis announced Tuesday, March 8, the company cannot quickly rebuild the facility and is ending the employment of the 230 people who worked there.

Shearer’s CEO Bill Nicktakis announced in a news release Tuesday that the company made the decision to lay off the employees at the plant, which is about 40 miles south of the Tri-Cities. The East Oregonian reported that the plant currently employs 230 people.

Nicktakis estimated that it would take 15 to 18 months to rebuild and resume production. They have not yet decided the future of the site.

“As you know, our Shearer’s plant in Hermiston experienced a devastating fire two weeks ago. We are thankful to the first responders, police officers and firefighters who cared for our valued employees and managed the fire. After assessing the damage, it’s clear that the destruction is too great to quickly rebuild and begin production in the near term,” Nicktakis wrote.

He said the company is exploring opportunities to relocate employees interested in working at other plants. According to the company’s website, that could mean a big move, as the Hermiston location was their only facility on the West Coast.

Nicktakis also said they are providing a severance package and continuation of benefits “to recognize the effort and tenure that has gone into making the site successful over the past years.”

He said the company is doing everything it can to continue to support employees, including having their leadership team work with organizations in the community to plan events that will benefit employees — such as food drives, family activities and job fairs.

“We will continue to provide counseling services to those affected and will do what we can to help them find other employment,” Nicktakis wrote.

“We are appreciative of the outpouring of support we have received from community businesses and our local government representatives. Please continue to put our Shearer’s Hermiston family in your thoughts through this difficult time.”