Layoffs in Oxford: R.J. Reynolds to close Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company plant, will lay off 114 workers

OXFORD- The Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company, Inc., will permanently close its facility in Oxford, and 114 workers will be laid off starting on August 2, a required notice sent from the firm’s parent company, Reynolds American Inc., to the North Carolina Department of Commerce States.

The notice required under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act follows reporting from the AP and the Winston-Salem Journal last month noting that the company would consolidate production into a plant facility in Tobaccoville, North Carolina.

The notice filed with the Department of Commerce, which WRAL TechWire obtained upon request, states that some workers at the Oxford facility were offered an “opportunity to transfer to the Reynolds Operations Center in Tobaccoville, NC.”

Eight workers accepted the transfer offer, the notice states.

According to the letter, signed by Patricia Holliman, director, employment law partner, “[i]t is expected that 114 employees employed at this facility will be laid off.”

The North Carolina Department of Commerce publishes a report and updates it each time a company notice is received. Through April 20, there have been a total of 1,007 North Carolina workers affected by 11 companies thus far in 2022.

The Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company, Inc. plans in Oxford to produce the Natural American Spirit brand. The company was acquired by RJ Reynolds Tobacco Company in 2002.

RJ Reynolds did not respond immediately to a request for comment from WRAL TechWire.

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