Mt. Carmel Mayor Joe Judge says local leaders are uniting in response to the sudden closure of Champion Laboratories. During Monday afternoon’s City Council meeting, Judge shared that he has been engaged in discussions throughout the past week regarding the shutdown of the company’s Albion location.
Judge reported that he, along with Albion Mayor Wes Harris and Grayville Mayor Travis Thompson, attended a meeting last Friday. The three communities have formed a task force and plan to meet again later this week to consider local incentives or benefits that could be offered to attract a new buyer for the facility.
The mayor emphasized that the goal is to explore steps that can be taken locally to help resolve the situation and potentially bring new ownership or new opportunities to the site.
Judge also noted that First Brands, the parent company, announced on Friday the closure of Jasper Rubber in Jasper, Indiana. That facility supplied components for Champion Labs, including check valves, O-rings, and grommets.
Judge asked the community to keep affected employees and their families in their thoughts and prayers as workers across multiple communities face job losses.
He said more information will be provided as the task force continues its work.