By GAYLE WEBER

gweber@dailynews.net

Nearly 280 individuals will be without a job at the end of March following NEW Customer Service Companies' announcement Tuesday it will shutter its Hays facility.

However, the company is giving employees options -- take a severance package, relocate to another NEW facility or work from home.

Terri Feely, senior vice president of human resources for NEW, said the severance package is generous and opportunities are available at NEW's nine other locations for those still hoping to work in the brick-and-mortar business. However, NEW employees can work from home if they meet certain performance standards.

"In addition to that, the employee has to have the capacity to maintain what we call a distraction-free environment," said Dave Marks, senior manager of human resource communication.

A workspace with a computer, phone and Internet connection is the physical requirement. Employees would be afforded the opportunity to work the same shift they do at the facility.

Deb Scheibler, operations manager for Kansas Workforce One, which oversees all workforce centers in western Kansas, said she has been in contact with NEW since the announcement Tuesday.

"They reassured me that most, if not all, will be offered opportunities to work at home," Scheibler said.

The state assisted with the closing of a sister contact center, Assurion, in July in Salina. Scheibler said 95 percent of the employees there chose the work-at-home option that was provided.

"She's assured me that when they do do the work to determine who's going to accept those opportunities, they'll call us out to offer a response," Scheibler said of NEW management.

Scheibler said she's hopeful the closing won't affect a large number of employees.

Resources are available for employees through KansasWorks workforce centers. One is located at 332 E. Eighth in Hays. Training, education and other job opportunity resources are available at the centers.

Aaron White, executive director of the Ellis County Coalition for Economic Development, said his office already was planning a job fair for April 18 that could assist NEW employees if they are looking for a job in the area at that point.

Feely said employees were the first consideration in the decision process.

"We have great employees in our center. Of the employees that we have, I think we have the most talented people out there," Feely said. "I think there's just not enough of them."