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The entrance to HAECO at Lake City Gateway Airport is seen in this file photo from earlier this year. (FILE)
Aircraft maintenance firm HAECO is still paying its employees despite having no work for them to do, so it’s putting them to use helping the community.
The company is offering to have its workers take on jobs to help local government and businesses, said Lake City Manager Joe Helfenberger. The city plans to accept the proposal once it has written assurance there will be no liability issues.
“They’ll probably be able to get a lot done in a short period of time,” Helfenberger said. “And this is especially helpful since we aren’t able to use inmates because of the covid-19 situation.”
The work will consist of low-risk assignments such as mowing grass, clearing brush and painting the city wastewater plant on St. Margarets Street, Helfenberger said.
HAECO has given verbal assurance that workers’ comp will cover the labor. The city just needs the same assurance in writing, Helfenberger said.
The county is in the process of determining what HAECO’s workers can help out with, said County Manager Ben Scott.
In the private sector, HAECO workers are helping out at businesses such as including nursing homes, Helfenberger said.
“They were paying these people anyway, and they’d rather have them helping the community than being idle,” Helfenberger said.
A representative from HAECO was not available for comment.
On April 20, HAECO announced it was bracing for layoffs for some or all of its employees at its Lake City operation. It’s not clear where the layoffs stand or how many of the company’s 600 employees at the site have been or will be affected.