During the last two months, Mapes Piano String Company in Elizabethton has temporarily laid off many of its employees, but the company insists there are no plans to shut its doors permanently.
"Mapes is not planning to close," Mapes Operations Manager Mark Schaff said.
Mapes, which specializes in making musical strings and mechanical spring used in houses and cars, won't confirm how many employees have been affected. However, Monday the company called back some of the employees it had previously laid off. Still, just this weekend, Mapes employees received a letter in the mail from the company. According to Schaff, the company made a "minor" change to a policy in the company's employee handbook. Schaff says from here on out, if an employee is terminated, Mapes will not reimburse that person with their unused vacation time. So, is the company planning on permanently terminating any employees? Schaff says there have not been any terminations and says there are no plans for any in the near future.
"We are respecting our employees," Schaff said. "We miss them...when demand picks up, people will be brought back to work."
Currently, Schaff says the demand remains high when its comes to strings for musical instruments. He says because of that demand, the plant remains in operation seven days a week. However, the lagging housing and auto markets have led to a bit of a sour note for Mapes' other products, Schaff said. For that reason, the plant is operating with less staff. However, Schaff hopes the slow down is just temporary.
"I have a lot of great employees who are laid off," Schaff said. "We miss them...I don't have a crystal ball, but we're trying not to close."
Schaff would not say how many people have been affected by recent layoffs at Mapes. At its peak in 2001, he says the Elizabethton business employed roughly 200 people.
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