St. Cloud warehouse lays off hundreds of workers as Publishers Clearing House downsizes

Fulfillment Distribution Center plans to lay off 350 employees in St. Cloud this fall when the plant closes.

The center said the Oct. 31 layoffs will come because the center’s only customer, Publishers Clearing House, is discontinuing its mail-order commercial business. Publishers Clearing House announced its own layoffs in Jericho, N.Y., late last week, with 156 employees losing their jobs starting in July.

New York-based Publishers Clearing House is known for mailing offers promoting sweepstakes with million-dollar prizes. The company makes its revenue from merchandise and magazine sales. A representative of Publishers Clearing House was not reachable for comment. FDC president Dave Baldwin was also not reachable for comment.

In the center’s letter to the state about the layoffs, the company said it “is looking for other fulfillment customers to replace the current work.” It has been in business since 1998.

St. Cloud Mayor Dave Kleis said the layoff news was “unfortunate,” though he’s hopeful FDC finds another customer.

“We’ll do everything we can,” Kleis said.

The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development reported St. Cloud had an unemployment rate of 3.3% in March, higher than the overall state rate of 2.7%. That’s after St. Cloud landed an Amazon distribution center in 2021 that added hundreds of jobs to the local economy.