Final Dal-Tile employee leave post as plants caretaker

OLEAN Steve Freer filed out of the Dal-Tile plant the same as his co-workers on what was a sad day in the citys history: Dec. 12, 2012.

That day, the tile plant on East State Street shut down for good. The closure left 174 without jobs and ended a century of mosaic tile production in Olean. Mohawk Industries, Dal-Tiles parent company, transferred the Olean sites operations to a sister facility in Gettysburg, Pa.

But unlike the majority of his colleagues many of whom left the plant with no real job prospects or guarantees for the future Mr. Freer returned for work the next day. He would oversee the plants mothballing, a job that would take about 18 months to complete. Hed also keep an eye on the facility until it came under new ownership.

Now, nearly two years later, Mr. Freer is the last Dal-Tile employee to work at the plant. His final day there was Friday.

"If you told me that I'd be the last guy standing here five years ago, I'd have laughed at you," Mr. Freer said, his voice echoing through the cavernous, empty expanse that once buzzed with the production of mosaic tile. Id never have thought that Id be the last man standing.

Mr. Freer began working at 1414 E. State St. in 1987.

Before I worked here, I was a motorcycle mechanic for the Blumenthals at their motorcycle shop, Mr. Freer told the Times Herald. I worked there for many years. My wife was a receptionist at Dal-Tile for years and she knew the personnel guy and was able to help me get in here.

His first assignment was working in the stock room during the plants second shift. He eventually worked his way up to stock room manager on the first shift, a job he held for the better part of two decades. That job is likely what made him a candidate to serve as the plants final caretaker.

As part of being the stock room manager, I was a buyer for the company, so I knew the computer system and all the stock we had, so this job kind of fell to me, he said. I was recommended for the job because my boss knew I was close to retirement.

When Mr. Freer reported for work on Dec. 13, 2012, he joined about 45 other former Dal-Tile employees who were kept on temporarily to clear out the plant.

Originally posted here:
Final Dal-Tile employee leave post as plants caretaker