October 21, 2024 – Hartford, Wi – Triton Trailers, 857 W State Street, in Hartford, Wi is closing. The company told its employees it would be closing in January 2025. The closure affects 113 jobs.
Hartford city administrator Steve Volkert confirmed the mayor received notice of the closure on Thursday, October 17, 2024.
“Last Thursday, they did make the announcement to their existing staff of 113 that they were closing Hartford and another location in Texas,” said Volkert. “We were made aware at 9 o’clock in the morning they were looking for police protection in case something went dramatically wrong.
“It’s pretty standard if you’re going to tell 113 people know their jobs are ending, that they normally would contact either sheriff’s department or police department for protection just in case. So, they contacted us and at 11 o’clock, their CEO made the announcement.
“We’re told, it was very short. There were no questions. They just made the announcement, and within 15 minutes, everybody was able to go home for the rest of the day with pay. They normally working four 10s and Friday would have been a normal day off so today they would be back at work until January 12, 2025, at which time then they will be formally closing the plant.”
Volkert added, the employees who normally drive to Hartford to work will have plenty of options. “In the economy we’re currently in there’s a lot of businesses in Hartford that are going to be open to taking many of their employees,” he said. “I think a lot of them will be offered positions at some of the other companies who, again, have struggled because they can’t find qualified employees. They’ve got some welders and who will be able to find jobs elsewhere.”
Calls have been placed to ALCOM, the owner of Triton Trailers. The company in Maine purchased the business in 2022.
The state Department of Workforce Development is generally notified about business closures. According to the website, “certain circumstances, federal and/or state law requires businesses laying off workers employed in Wisconsin to provide the State’s Department of Workforce Development (DWD) with advance written notice of the layoffs.”
As of October 21, 2024 – no notices had been posted. Click HERE for notices as of October 16, 2024.
This is a working story, and more information will be posted when details are available.
