ST. LOUIS — When restaurants close their doors to the public, they're not the only ones forced to lay off workers.
Take Alsco Inc., a renter of uniforms and linen to the industry, with a location in the city of St. Louis' Kosciusko neighborhood, at 315 Lynch St. With restaurant activity limited due to the coronavirus, it's only washing towels and aprons, plus linens for health care and industrial clients.
The drop-off in revenue is leading it to lay off 39 workers at the city plant, according to spokesman Ben Fox. He said the facility normally employs 150 to 200 people. Affected workers include 28 production employees, nine sales representatives, an office clerk and a custodian.
"Like with a lot of companies that directly service the food and beverage industry, we're taking a rough hit," Fox said of the Salt Lake City-based firm. It has 83 branches in North America, many of which also have had reductions in staff.
A letter Alsco wrote to the state of Missouri said some of the affected employees are represented by unions, including the Chicago & Midwest Regional Joint Board-Workers United/SEIU, Teamsters Local Union No. 682 and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.
Fox said Alsco, which is owned by the Steiner family, hopes to rehire workers as restaurants are able to reopen their dining rooms.
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