WATERTOWN, Wis. — A mattress manufacturing facility in Watertown abruptly shut down Monday, leaving dozens of employees without work just weeks before the holidays.
The Corsicana Mattress plant, formerly known as Symbol Mattress, posted a sign on the door of its South 12th Street facility stating "Permanently closed as of Monday November 17th."
Jeff Checots, who worked at the plant for 7.5 years, said the closure came without warning.
"No warning just complete blindsided us," Checots said.
Checots was scheduled to be on vacation when he received a message from a coworker suggesting he come in because the plant was closing down.
"I thought they were joking and I went in and yeah they closed the plant down," Checots said.
The sudden closure has left employees questioning the company's decision-making process.
Watch: Mattress plant in Watertown closes permanently, leaving workers 'blindsided'
"A lot of people were wondering why didn't you warn us, why didn't you give us more time, why couldn't you kept this going until at least the end of the year," Checots said.
Checots was offered two weeks of severance pay and paid out for his remaining vacation days.
"Holidays are going to be a lot different this year," Checots said.
The company did not respond to requests for comment about the closure. Watertown city leaders, including the mayor, said they had no information on the plant's shutdown.
This story was reported on-air by Megan Lee and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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