Former Kmart Workers Hit Job Market After Store Closes

There were hugs, tears and a real sense of loss for the “close knit” employees of KMart as it closed its doors for good Sunday in Middletown.

The company announced it was closing the location in  April 

 Howard Riefs, director of corporate communications for the company, said a majority of  employees are part-time. He added that eligible employees will receive severance and have the opportunity to apply for open positions at area Sears or Kmart stores.

Patti Astigarraga of Levittown started working at the retail outlet during the holiday shopping season last year and described Sunday as a “sad and somber last day.”

“I needed the extra job because I couldn’t  keep up with energy costs,” she said. “For the last six months that I’ve been there, I’ve grown really close to a number of people.”

“We hugged, cried and kissed as the hours turned to minutes then to seconds” in the life of the outlet, she said.

Astigarraga said she plans on looking for another part -time job but expects it to be a challenge of sorts.

“There just aren’t a lot of jobs out there these days,” she said.

“Store closures are part of a series of actions we’re taking to reduce on-going expenses, adjust our asset base, and accelerate the transformation of our business model,” Riefs said in April. “These actions will better enable us to focus our investments on serving our customers and members through integrated retail – at the store, online and in the home.”

The closing comes months after Sears Holding Company posted lower-than-expected sales losses. Kmart sales were down 5.7 percent this year, according to an April report.

Former employees, who asked not to be identified, said the store had been experiencing challenges with the landlord of the property.

“When it rains, we would put buckets in the aisles because of the water leaking down” in to the area where shoppers would be, said a former employee.

Former employees who spoke to LevittownNow.com wondered aloud what was going to replace the chain store, citing a number of different rumors.