Cottondale Automotive Supplier Closing, Affecting 90 Workers

COTTONDALE, AL — More than 90 employees of an automotive supplier in south Tuscaloosa County will soon be out of work after the Chinese parent company announced it would permanently shutter its local operations.

Yanfeng U.S. Automotive Systems—Cottondale announced the closure in March for its location at 15911 Progress Drive, with the last day on the job slated for June 19.

While approximately 90 employees will lose their jobs, the layoffs will take place in phases based on need, the company said, with some employees given the opportunity to transfer to different Yanfeng manufacturing hubs across the company's North American footprint.

Several local entities, including West AlabamaWorks, met with impacted workers last week to discuss options and opportunities moving forward. In an effort to help in the placement of those losing their jobs, West AlabamaWorks announced a partnership with several local automotive manufacturers to conduct on-site interviews before the Cottondale facility officially closes.

"Many of these employees will have the opportunity before the doors close at Yanfeng to have conversations with the participating companies they would not normally be able to have if they were just going to the workforce to find a job," said Donny Jones, COO of the Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama and executive director of West AlabamaWorks.

The last day for on-site interviews is today after they began on Tuesday.

These businesses include: Lear Corp., SMP Automotive, ZF Chassis and Martinrea International.

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