Outlet center planning to hold job fair in Mebane on Sept. 16

By: JournalNow Staff | JOURNAL STAFF AND WIRE REPORT
Published: August 31, 2010

MEBANE -- Tanger Outlet Center said yesterday that it will hold a job fair from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sept. 16 at the Mebane Arts and Community Center, 622 Corregidor St., in Mebane.

Tanger officials said they expect about 800 full- and part-time jobs will be created at the center, which will have 80 stores. The center is scheduled to open Nov. 5. The center will be off Interstate 40/85 at exit 154.

Among the retailers at the job fair will be Bass, Brooks Brothers, DKNY, Easy Spirit, Izod, Nine West, QVC, Saks Fifth Avenue OFF 5TH, Talbots and Van Heusen.

For more information, call 919-304-3378 or go to www.tanger

outlet.com/mebane/careers. Applicants are advised to bring their resume. -- Richard Craver

Former McAlister's executives

plan to open new restaurant

A restaurant chain founded by former executives with McAlister's Deli said yesterday that it has plans to open up to five stores in both the Winston-Salem area and the Triangle.

Newk's Express Café of Ridgeland Miss., has 28 restaurants in seven states, with its only N.C. site in Charlotte. It features salads, gourmet pizzas, toasted and specialty sandwiches and soups.

Kudzu Food Services LLC, also of Ridgeland, will be a franchisee of Newk's and open restaurants in both markets. Each restaurant will have 40 to 60 jobs. Although the company plans to open its first restaurant in the Triangle in the fall of 2011, its plan doesn't call for a restaurant in Winston-Salem until 2013, said Stephen Hinkis, the vice president of franchise operations.

"We are going to do our due diligence for A-plus sites to avoid having any site misses," Hinkis said. He said that because Newk's targets catering, it likes to be in destination settings and near hospitals.

Newk's founders, Chris Newcomb, Don Newcomb and Debra Bryson, were members of McAlister's executive-management team. They sold their interest in McAlister's in 2001 and opened the first Newk's restaurant in 2004.

-- Richard Craver

Caterpillar switching employees

to 401(k) accounts from pensions

Caterpillar Inc. said yesterday that it will switch more than half its 50,000 U.S. employees to 401(k) accounts from defined pension benefit plans to save the company money.

The move will affect 28,000 non-union workers, said Bridget Young, a spokeswoman for the company. In most cases, pensions will be frozen until the employee retires or leaves the company, and the accounts can't be rolled into 401(k) plans, she said.

"We are making this transition in light of a continued trend among large companies to migrate from defined benefit plans to defined contribution plans as their predominant retirement income benefit and to strengthen Caterpillar's competitive position," she said.

Caterpillar will provide an annual contribution to its workers' 401(k) plans and match employee contributions of as much as 6 percent of pay.

Caterpillar announced July 30 that it had chosen Winston-Salem for a $426 million plant that will have 392 Caterpillar employees and 118 contract workers. The company plans to begin construction in November, with a goal of having the plant operational in the first quarter of 2012.

-- Bloomberg News, Journal staff

Judge approves settlement

between Pace, BCI Aircraft

A U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge approved Friday an $85,000 settlement involving the estate of Pace Airlines Inc. and BCI Aircraft Leasing Inc. and BCI Aircraft Leasing Ireland Ltd. of Ireland.

The settlement ended all claims by the estate against the companies, which primarily were focused on recouping payment for maintenance work on a Boeing 737 aircraft.

There were several objections filed regarding the settlement amount, but no one objected at the hearing. -- Richard Craver

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