PepsiCo plant closing rocks Liberty

Shutdown to hit workers, village hard

By Anahi Rodriguez and Manor Ink Staff

Liberty, NY – The news surprised everyone. The PepsiCo Foods plant in Liberty, employing close to 300 people, is closing. Some have described the announcement as “devastating,” both for the employees and also for the Town of Liberty.

Local elected officials and community leaders have all condemned the layoffs and rallied to try to help the affected workers. “We are deeply concerned about the decision to close the plant that has been an integral part of our community for decades,” said Liberty Supervisor Frank DeMayo. Sullivan County Legislator Luis Alvarez noted that many of the facility’s employees are primarily Spanish-speaking and have lived in Sullivan County for many years. “Their families are here, they’ve bought homes here and their children go to the public schools here,” Alvarez said. “They have been here a long time, and will now have to start over again.”

The workers’ concerns

Manor Ink spoke with some of the affected workers. Carlos Spanero, a materials handler, with forklift and trainer certifications, has worked in the facility for seven years. He said he and his co-workers were “shocked” by the news, adding that while there had been rumors of a reduction in shifts, no one expected the plant to completely close. Spanero said that many workers were deeply worried because some had recently purchased homes in the county and there are not many good employment opportunities close to home.

Another worker, who preferred not to be named, said he has been employed for six years at the plant and was very worried about how quickly he would be able to find other comparable work in order to support his wife and daughter.

PepsiCo explained that its snack business has declined and that, while the Liberty plant “played a vital role in producing our beloved PopCorners brand,” the company has another larger and more automated facility in Middletown. In its press release, the company said, “The pace of growth in this product line (the PopCorners brand) has made it difficult to sustain the Liberty site’s long-term viability.”

The employees have been advised to apply for positions in the Middletown plant or at PepsiCo locations in other states. But leaving New York would mean the dislocation of families tied to the Sullivan County community and its schools. PepsiCo has indicated that 287 employees will be laid off in shifts, starting on May 21 and ending on June 6, and they will be offered severance packages, based upon their length of employment. But as one affected employee said, “It won’t sustain my family for long.”

How Liberty will be affected

The impact on Liberty will also be severe. The Ink was told workers generally make just under $30 per hour at the plant, a good rate of pay for the area. That amounts to $15 million in annual wages to the affected workforce that will be lost to the community. The severance payments will amount to less than two weeks of pay for every year employed at the plant and will not sustain the local economy for long. Village shops will suffer.

“It will impact all of the businesses, as that’s a lot of people laid off in a small town,” said Paul Davies, owner of Headlines Barbershop on Main Street. Rosa Chocho, proprietor of Rosely Nails said, “Yes, it will hurt us and other businesses as fewer people will come in. So we will all suffer. But I am most sad for the workers and their families.”

A worker in Paesano Pizza on the corner of Main and Chestnut Streets is concerned, too. “We deliver a few times a day to the plant,” he said.

“I have lived here in Liberty a long time,” said Alan Goodman, senior client advisor at Key Bank. “I see plant shifts starting and ending with a lot of people walking to and from work. They bank here and shop in the stores on Main Street. Many don’t have their own transportation to work elsewhere.”

The Town of Liberty may also suffer if the plant is not sold to a new entity that will use it and fully keep it on the tax rolls.

Many groups are hoping to help the affected workers. There were job fairs on Mar. 25 sponsored by the Center for Workforce Development and one on Apr. 1 at SUNY Sullivan in Loch Sheldrake.

Job Fair offers job possibilities

SUNY Sullivan will hold a Job Fair on Tuesday, Apr. 1, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the E Lobby of the college, 112 College Rd., Loch Sheldrake. Attendees, many of whom are likely to be PepsiCo workers, can connect with over 40 regional employers and organizations, including the NY State Dept. of Parks, the Sullivan County Dept. of Public Health, Sullivan County Workforce Development, Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, Garnet Health and the Center for Discovery. Job seekers can receive free professional headshots for use on resumes, LinkedIn, and other personal branding purposes. For more information, visit sunysullivan.edu/2025/03/job-fair-to-connect-job-seekers-with-top-employers-in-the-region.

SUNY Sullivan celebrará una Feria de Empleo el Martes, 1 de Abril, de 10 a 13 horas, en el vestíbulo este de la universidad, ubicado en 112 College Rd., Loch Sheldrake. Los asistentes, muchos de los cuales probablemente sean trabajadores de PepsiCo, podrán contactar con más de 40 empleadores y organizaciones regionales, entre ellos el Departamento de Parques del Estado de Nueva York, el Departamento de Salud Pública del Condado de Sullivan, el Departamento de Desarrollo Laboral del Condado de Sullivan, el Centro de Artes Bethel Woods, Garnet Health y el Centro para el Descubrimiento. Quienes buscan empleo pueden recibir fotos profesionales gratuitas para usar en sus currículums. Para más información, visite sunysullivan.edu/2025/03/job-fair-to-connect-job-seekers-with-top-employers-in-the-region.