Ike Behar Manufacturing owned, half a century old Prescott Shirt Company will soon shutter, bucking under high manufacturing cost and unrestricted import of clothing in to Canada.
Sheldon Cook, Plant Manager at Prescott, maker of the famed Hathaway shirts broke the news to local media saying 53 redunduncies were expected.
Cook pointed out that few customers were ready to pay for costly North American clothing products, and North American producers can barely afford to meet the costs.
Even relatively high Canadian dollar value in recent years cut the price advantages a company could have by manufacturing in Canada, he added.
Sources said only the Prescott plant, one of three plants owned Ike Behar Manufacturing, is closing.
James Walker founded the company way back in 1948 at Prescott.
Gord Brown, Leeds-Grenville MP commenting on the closure said Prescott shirt plant succumbed to global manufacturing trends which favour China, India and Mexico having abundunt and cheap labour.
It was Brown who was instrumental in helping Behar achieve an extension on duty remissions, last year.
There was nothing more that the Federal Government could do, he added.
Brown has arranged a meeting Friday between Service Canada employment office personnel and the shirt plant's management at Prescott to ensure employees get all government assistance due to them.
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