ROCKINGHAM — A clothing manufacturer has its eye on Richmond County and a survey could help it decide to locate here.
Economic Developer Martie Butler is asking residents, and those of surrounding counties, to take a few minutes to fill out the online survey “to assist recruiting this company to Richmond County.”
According to the survey, the company would bring hundreds of full-time jobs and offer benefits including paid time off, a company-supported retirement plan and up to 50 percent on individual and family health insurance plans.
The majority of the jobs would be be “cut and sew” assembly positions and pay $10.50 an hour with opportunities for overtime and bonus pay, according to the survey. The company would also train applicants with no experience in the textile industry.
The survey is available in both English (https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/TTW5GTL) and Spanish (https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/TR23CQ3) and should be filled out by Oct. 5.
“This survey is a great way to show the teamwork and collaborative nature of our community,” Butler said Monday afternoon. “The company has already experienced the collaborative efforts of our local government, Richmond Community College and Local NC Works office; however we feel this survey will show the community’s buy-in toward our economic development efforts.”
If the yet-unnamed company picks Richmond County, it would bring the most jobs out of all those that located here in the past four years, Butler said.
In 2016, three new companies — RSI Home Products, Direct Pack and North Carolina Industrial Sand — announced they were bringing jobs to the county and two others — Perdue Foods and Plastek — announced expansions, for a total of more than 330 new jobs and $46.5 million in capital investment.
The county has a rich history in textiles, though not as booming as it once was. However, there are several active plants including International Textile Group, Wade Manufacturing and Therafirm.
