SCHUMER ANNOUNCES EXPANSION AT HICKEY FREEMAN IN ROCHESTER

Today U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer announced that Rochester's Hickey Freeman will be adding an additional 25 jobs over the next four weeks and aiming to employ as many as 550 people at the plant by the end of next year.  Currently there are approximately 480 employees working at the facility.  Schumer said that the plant was operating at capacity, and parent company Hartmarx Corporation will be aggressively marketing the American made Hickey Freeman brand in Europe and Asia. 

Schumer led the effort to save Hickey Freeman from liquidation last year and said that the company's current success underscores what he, along with plant workers and local officials, had been saying all along - that Hickey Freeman is a money making, iconic business with a bright future in the Rochester/FingerLakes region.

"Once again, Hickey Freeman and its workers have proven themselves to be the best in the business," said Schumer.  "This announcement and the company's success proves what we've been saying all long - that the Hickey Freeman brand is strong, profitable and will have a bright future in Rochester.  It is an iconic business and Hickey Freeman's success bodes well for the future of the entire region."

Hickey Freeman was founded in Rochester, New York in 1899, where it still operates to this day.  Wool cloth imported by Hickey Freeman is cut and sewn into wool clothing which, in turn, is sold in stores across the United States and around the world.  Generations of American workers and their families have depended on Hickey Freeman for their livelihoods.  Approximately 480 workers still do so today.   
 
Over the past year, Schumer has been deeply involved in the drive to protect Hickey Freeman. In 2009, Schumer successfully urged Wells Fargo to keep credit flowing to HickeyFreeman's parent company, Hartmarx, so the people employed by the company would not be at risk of losing their jobs. Later that year, Schumer led employees of HickeyFreeman's at a rally designed to keep up the pressure on Well Fargo to continue to provide HickeyFreeman's parent company with the credit they need to continue manufacturing operations. Schumer was able to help the company emerge from bankruptcy and avoid liquidation.