Sixty-three people will be out of work this December after Norida announced on Wednesday it is closing its call centre in Lindsay.
The call centre opened in 2014 at the Whitney Town Centre on Kent Street, taking over from the former Sykes call centre as part of a deal which included a call centre in Saint John, N.B.
Nordia offers custom support service for Bell Canada customers.
However, with its lease up early in 2019, Nordia says it was faced with a decision whether to renew or not.
Phillip Van Leeuwen, Nordia director of communications, says the rent was 18 per cent higher than its other 13 locations. He tells CHEX News the operating costs were “very high” and finding an alternate site was not a viable solution.
“It’s one-fifth the size of our call centres but one of our most expensive,” he said.
He also noted the City of Kawartha Lakes is a “small market” which made it difficult to hire employees and the area offered limited growth opportunities for the business.
He says the Lindsay call centre has 48 customer service representatives, and five management roles with 10 currently on leave. The centre is set to close on Dec. 21.
Van Leeuwen says employees will be offered opportunities to apply for positions at Nordia’s other locations along with providing support for job skills training, upgrading resumes and providing time off for job interviews.
“We wanted to give them as much time as possible to prepare for the transition,” said Van Leeuwen.
Nordia currently operates a call centre in Peterborough with 300 employees.
“Lindsay was a unique case based on economics,” said Van Leeuwen. “It’s never an easy decision and it’s difficult for the employees and the company. Hopefully, we can help people.”