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Buffalo Niagara Gets Major Boost in Jobs

Over 650 slated to be hired as four area companies look for workers

By Stephen T. Watson

July 21, 2010
 

For a region used to losing jobs like we lose Super Bowls and free-agent hockey players, Tuesday brought a trophy-worthy dose of good economic news.

Four companies announced plans to hire more than 650 people in separate projects in an area still struggling to recover from the recent recession.

This comes as some rare good news for job seekers in a region where plant closings and job cuts remain all too common.

"It's very serendipitous that a bunch of very different companies is announcing these job increases at the same time," said Andrew J. Rudnick, president and chief executive officer of the Buffalo Niagara Partnership. "There isn't a common reason for them, but each of them is a precious asset."

Walmart, the publisher of the Talking Phone Book and a reborn fire truck maker all said they are seeking workers.

And a fast-growing pharmaceutical business announced plans to move to the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus and start hiring, the latest boost to a life-sciences sector that carries the high hopes of local officials.

"It builds off something that is unique to the region," said George Palumbo, a professor of economics at Canisius College.

The businesses represent a broad swath of the local economy, from the retail sector to advanced manufacturing.

The hiring comes as the Buffalo Niagara region copes with a 7.7 percent unemployment rate, the state Labor Department reported this month.

"I think in this international economy, there isn't a job increase announcement that shouldn't be greeted with very strong support and very broad smiles," Rudnick said.

They include:

* Walmart, which needs up to 400 workers for its new store on Transit Road in Lancaster, opening in September.

A recruiting center opened at 4779 Transit Road for the nearby store opening in September.

* LocalEdge, the publisher of the Talking Phone Book, which is opening a call center in Amherst that will employ 150.

* E-One New York, which is bringing back to life the former American LaFrance plant in Hamburg, where gleaming fire trucks were built.

The company has hired about 15 people at the Hamburg plant and needs to bring in 10 more.

William Savage, E-One's president, said he is calling back former American LaFrance employees because of the special skills they have that are needed for the work.

* And OncoMed Pharmaceuticals, an oncology pharmacy services company, announced it is opening a facility on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus in September.

Employees will compound patient-specific cancer drugs and deliver them to health care providers and hospitals in the region, a process that simplifies and lowers the cost of dispensing this medicine.

The Long Island-based company will hire 12 pharmacists and administrative workers to open the facility before growing to 45 in the first year and 100 within two years, OncoMed said.

Also, Ingram Micro last week held a career fair at its Wehrle Drive officesbecause the technology distributor wants to add 80 jobs in Amherst.

Palumbo said the developments won't all have the same impact on the local economy.

Shoppers won't buy more groceries just because Walmart opened a new store in Lancaster, the economist said. They'll just shop at this Walmart instead of another grocery store in the area, he added.

"Any net growth over time will probably be offset by a reduction in employment at other places," Palumbo said.

The other three projects, however, should produce significant economic benefits, he said, because their demand comes from outside the area.

Those jobs bring in net additional income, and as the employees spend this new money in the region, there is a multiplier effect for the local economy.

Palumbo said the pharmaceutical jobs are particularly welcome because they build off a life-sciences sector that has received significant public investment over the years.

"This is an opportunity to keep highly skilled, highly educated workers in Buffalo," he said.