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The company made the move based on changing manpower requirements, Sears Holdings Corp. spokeswoman Kimberly Freely said.
"Due to the variability of our freight levels, we continually evaluate our workload," she said. "In order to maintain competitiveness, we had to reduce staff levels."
The layoffs affect 15 of the 342 hourly employees and four out of 54 salaried employees, Freely said. Hourly workers are those who perform such tasks as loading and unloading trucks and other warehouse operations; salaried employees are management.
"It's a very small percentage of employees," Freely said.
The last time Sears Holdings Co. made job cuts at the Hanover Township site was in February 2008, when 90 workers were laid off because of poor retail sales. Sears Logistics Services Inc. ships consumer goods, such as appliances and furniture, to the company's stores.
If the economy improves, the laid-off employees could be hired back, Freely said.
"We're hopeful associates will be able to find other positions within Sears and Kmart at a future date," she said.
Sears merged with Kmart in 2005 to create Sears Holdings Co., headquartered in Hoffman Estates, Ill. The nation's fourth-largest retailer recently reported that in December, Kmart sales fell 1.1 percent and Sears sales fell 12.8 percent.
"We believe that comparable store sales were affected by unfavorable economic conditions, including the weak housing market and consumer credit issues," a Jan. 8 press release stated.
All Sears Holdings Co. employees received notification on Dec. 29 that there would be a freeze on the company's contributions to their 401(k) plans, starting Jan. 31.
"Obviously, given the current economic environment and our need to control expenses, we suspended the match," Freely said.
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