By Jessica Wasmund<br><a href="mailto:jessica.wasmund@gnnewspaper.com">E-mail Jessica</a>
The former Washington Mutual on Route 31 in Albion will be keeping its doors open — and keeping close to 850 employed this holiday season.
In late September, WaMu went bankrupt and was bought out by JP Morgan Chase for $1.9 billion. Founded in 1889, and in Albion since 2001, WaMu was based in Seattle, Wash., and the largest bank to fail in national history.
According to Mike Fusco, a spokesman for Chase, the location will remain open and in operation.
“When we acquired Washington Mutual, the deadline for all employment decisions was Dec. 1 — people were just waiting on that decision,” he said.
Since the September acquisition, many state, local and federal officials have been lobbying to keep the facility open.
“I’m very pleased about the announcement — we’ve been working very hard to convince Washington Mutual that Albion is still a great location,” said state Sen. George Maziarz, R-Newfane. “I remember back when we first lobbied and were going to Seattle many years ago to get it located here. ... We convinced them then it was the right place to be, and I think many people still feel that way.”
Assemblyman Steve Hawley, R-Batavia, said he was “thrilled” the jobs were saved by Monday’s decision, calling the employer a vital part of the region’s economic future.
“We look forward to strengthening the relationship with JP Morgan Chase, which was established during the process,” Hawley said. “The employees of this facility have proven themselves to be hard-working, loyal and valuable assets to their new managers at JP Morgan Chase, and I am very pleased the CEO ... has listened to our pleas that these jobs are kept.”
In the past seven years, WaMu has invested an estimated $14 in the Albion location. In late September, the collapse of Washington Mutual, the nation’s largest savings and loans company, was touted as the country’s largest-ever banking failure. The acquisition by JP Morgan Chase made it the largest banking operation in America.
On a national level, many JP Morgan Chase employees did lose their jobs, after the bank announced Monday it would cut 9,200 WaMu positions. An estimated 4,000 are expected to be cut by the end of January, according to spokesmen, while the remaining 5,200 are expected to be laid off by the end of 2009.
