GREENFIELD — Walmart plans to offer jobs to the 511 Greenfield DHL Supply Chain employees who will be laid off this spring as Walmart assumes control of the local warehouse’s operations, officials said.
When Walmart’s contract with DHL ends, Walmart will take on the third-party logistics provider’s warehouse operations at 6719 W. County Road 350N, said Lynn Anderson, vice president of communications for DHL Supply Chain. Current employees will be offered new jobs at the same facility under Walmart after passing a pre-employment screening or given the opportunity to move to a new DHL location, she said.
The DHL facility in Greenfield, located north of Interstate 70 in Mt. Comfort, provides services on behalf of Walmart already, Anderson said. It is not uncommon for corporate clients like Walmart to seek control of a third-party provider and take over operations in house, Anderson said.
DHL filed a notice with the state workforce development office late last week about the layoffs. It noted the warehouse would not close; officials said employees who want to will be able to transition into new employment with Walmart.
“It looks like a bunch of people are losing their jobs, but in reality, we don’t think that’s going to happen,” Anderson said.
For workers who are interested in maintaining their employment at the same facility, Walmart has indicated it will accept them as employees, provided they are able to pass a basic pre-employment screening, Anderson said.
Employees who wish to continue working with DHL might be eligible to fill positions at a different location in the state, Anderson said. DHL’s operations in Indiana include sites in Plainfield and Fort Wayne.