3M has filed formal notice that it will close its manufacturing plant in Fairmont, Minnesota, laying off 62 employees in a wind-down that begins Dec. 18 and runs through Dec. 31. The facility, which has operated in the small south-central Minnesota city since 1946, makes products including 3M’s Dual Lock fasteners along with a range of industrial, consumer and electronic goods.
According to startribune.com, 3M filed the notice with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development confirming the closure and the 62 layoffs. 3M has said it expects the Fairmont plant to close in early 2027, while the WARN notice lists layoffs from Dec. 18 through Dec. 31. As reported by 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS, the layoffs were confirmed through the federal WARN Act notice and the state’s Rapid Response Team, which track the same Dec. 18 start date and Dec. 31 closure timeline for the facility.
Positions being eliminated span the plant from top to bottom. The filing lists manufacturing and support roles ranging from plant manager to trainer, and separately names human resources staff, machine operators, supervisors and plant management among those losing their jobs. Some of the affected workers are represented by the United Steelworkers Union, with 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS specifying the bargaining unit as Local 142B Unit 11.
No Bumping Rights, But Severance Promised
The WARN notice spells out that Fairmont employees do not have “bumping” rights, which can allow more senior workers to displace less senior colleagues into other positions to stay employed; the state Rapid Response Team reviewed the filing. 3M has said it will provide severance to affected Fairmont employees, though the company has not detailed the amount or terms of that support in the filings cited so far.
The Fairmont facility itself sits on North State Street in a building spanning nearly 150,000 square feet, according to the Fairmont Sentinel. Over its roughly 80-year run in the city, the plant has produced items beyond the Dual Lock line — union documentation from the United Steelworkers notes the facility also makes bumper pads for furniture, diaper tape and hook-and-loop fasteners for industrial, consumer and electronic customers.
Part of a Much Bigger Pullback
Fairmont is not an isolated case. 3M announced in January that it intended to close the plant as part of a broader focus on manufacturing and supply-chain efficiency, and the Minnesota-based company has described the move as one piece of a multiyear plan to consolidate factory and distribution-center locations nationwide, per the same Star Tribune report. CEO Bill Brown said the company had already closed 16 sites this year and planned to shutter 10 more over the following year.
Reporting on the Fairmont closure has not been entirely consistent on scope. The WARN filing cited by the Star Tribune puts the layoff count at 62, while a separate report from kbew98country.com states the closure will impact about 80 positions. The discrepancy between those two figures has not been reconciled in available reporting.
What Happens Next
Federal WARN Act requirements, which the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development says exist to protect workers, families and communities, generally call for employers to give 60 days' notice ahead of covered plant closings and mass layoffs. For now, Fairmont workers face a holiday-season layoff window running from Dec. 18 through the final day of the year, with the broader question of the plant's ultimate closing date still tied to that early 2027 target.
