Metro-east plant closure will cost 110 jobs as some work moves to Mexico
Hubbell Inc., a multinational company that had annual revenue of $5.6 billion in 2024, will close its Wiegmann manufacturing plant in Freeburg and layoff 110 employees.
The plant’s operations will be transferred to existing Hubbell facilities in Aurora, Illinois, and Juarez, Mexico, according to the company.
Out of the 110 employees to be laid off in Freeburg, there are 98 members of the International Association of Sheet Metal Air Rail Transportation Workers Union, according to a letter Shelton, Connecticut-based Hubbell Inc. sent to the state on April 24.
The layoffs are scheduled to begin Sept. 1 and be completed by early to mid-2026. The Wiegmann factory, which traces its company roots to 1928 in Freeburg, is located at 501 W. Apple St. and its products include electrical boxes.
A sign on the exterior of the building Wednesday said “Hiring: Apply at www.hubbell.com.”
“All the way around it’s going to have a big impact on Freeburg and it’s unfortunate because it has been a longtime Freeburg company,” said Freeburg Village Administrator Matt Trout in an interview Wednesday.
“There’s a lot of people that work there that have been longtime Freeburg residents so anytime that many people of your community are going to lose their jobs … that’s a big impact.”
Trout said the village leaders have “a lot of concerns” with the employees’ future being “first and foremost.”
“We exhausted a lot of means to try to save it and unfortunately I don’t think there was much willingness on the other side of it,” Trout said.
Hubbell said in its letter to the state that the plant closure “is occurring as a result of the Company’s decision to consolidate its manufacturing and distribution operations into existing facilities” in Aurora, which is near Chicago, and Juarez, which is in northern Mexico near El Paso, Texas.
A representative from the union could not be reached for comment Wednesday.
“All employees were previously notified of the potential closure in 2024 prior to discussions with the union that concluded in January 2025,” according to the Hubbell letter sent to the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity. “Affected employees and the union will be notified of their individual severance and related benefits and anticipated separation date as the project progresses.”
Debbie Tucker, vice president for talent, inclusion and communications for Hubbell, declined an interview about the plant closure but released a statement that included information that was in the letter to the state.
It also stated, “Our focus currently is ensuring our employees get the support they need and delivering for our customers during this transition.”
The union employees at the plant as of April 24 include 20 welders, 19 machine operators, 18 assemblers, 13 warehouse workers and 10 painters, according to information Hubbell sent the state.
The non-union employees include a plant manager, a human resources manager and three production supervisors.
Hubbell was required to inform state officials about the plant closure because of regulations in the Illinois Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification, or WARN, Act.
The Belleville News-Democrat obtained a copy of Hubbell’s letter to the state via a Freedom of Information Act request to the village of Freeburg, which had been sent a copy of the letter.
Hubbell bought the former E.M. Wiegmann Co. plant in Freeburg in 1994, according to a report on Hubbell’s website.
The Wiegmann family had opened the plant at 501 W. Apple St. in 1964 to consolidate all of the Wiegmann factories into one location, according to Hubbell.
The report states E.M. Wiegmann Co. was established in Freeburg in 1928, subsequently moved to other metro-east sites and then returned to Freeburg after the company’s founder, Edgar Maurice Wiegmann died in 1958.
