Southwest Virginia Job Losses 2010-2020
By Lewis Loflin
In 2016, Southwest Virginia officials hailed a new call center in Wise, Virginia, operated by Frontier Secure, promising 500 jobs backed by a $5.6 million Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority (VCEDA) loan. Sykes Enterprises acquired it in 2017, but by 2025, the reality is clear: the 500 jobs never materialized. Instead, layoffs hit—184 in Wise in 2016—and the pattern of rehiring at lower wages dominated, not net growth.
A job fair at UVa-Wise’s Convocation Center on July 8-9, 2016, targeted 50 initial hires, with the center opening August 14, 2016 (BHC, June 30, 2016). No evidence shows the remaining 450 jobs were added, and Sykes’ subsequent closure in nearby Buchanan County underscores the instability of such ventures.
Sykes bought Frontier Secure on April 24, 2017, for $7.5 million (BJournal, June 9, 2017), absorbing the Wise site. VCEDA assured the $5.6 million loan repayment was unaffected, but job ads shifted and soon disappeared, suggesting no significant hiring. Sykes’ history of layoffs tells the story:
Over 2,700 jobs cut across states, with Wise and Buchanan reflecting a regional churn: workers laid off in one county, rehired in another, often at entry-level rates.
Sykes operated in Buchanan County’s Southern Gap for a decade, in a $25 million industrial park built around 2009. It closed in September 2019, laying off 197 workers after a client ended operations (WJHL, July 3, 2019). The building sat vacant until March 2021, when VEC relocated its call center there from Buchanan Information Park, retaining over 100 jobs and adding up to 110 new ones (VCEDA, January 29, 2021).
The former Sykes building at Southern Gap...will be the home of the new VEC Call Center, bringing existing jobs and up to 110 new jobs. —VCEDA, January 29, 2021
Funded by a $200,000 grant and local investment, VEC’s move grew its workforce to over 200. Yet, this followed VEC’s closure of its South Boston call center in June 2023, cutting 41 jobs (SoVaNOW, May 1, 2023). Statewide, VEC eliminated 157 positions due to federal funding cuts post-COVID, leaving Buchanan as its sole call center. No data confirms a net job increase—relocation, not creation, appears the outcome.
VCEDA pegged call center pay at $11/hour in 2016, roughly $13/hour in 2025 (King University estimate: $27,000/year). Compare this to 1970’s $1.60 minimum wage, $12.63 in 2025 dollars, or a mining job’s $127,595 household impact—4.7 call center jobs equal one miner’s economic ripple. UVa-Wise and Virginia Highlands Community College grads face slim prospects with such wages, a point LENOWISCO’s 2005 study flagged:
The region has been replacing manufacturing jobs with call center jobs, which provide limited advancement...easily moved. —LENOWISCO Broadband Study
Despite $120 million in regional broadband, job stability eludes Southwest Virginia.
Buchanan’s $25 million park lured Sykes, only to see it fold; taxpayers then funded VEC’s takeover. Travelocity’s Clintwood flop—550 jobs promised, 230 max, then closure—cost $10 million. Northrop-Grumman’s Russell County “IT” center, hyped for 700 jobs, became a low-wage help desk. VCEDA’s loans often go unrepaid, though no specific proof exists for Wise’s $5.6 million. The Virginia Employment Commission’s opacity hinders tracking net gains, a recurring issue.
By 2025, Wise and Buchanan exemplify a cycle: millions spent on call centers like Sykes, closures follow, and taxpayer agencies like VEC relocate without clear evidence of new jobs. Over 60,000 jobs lost in Tri-Cities since 2009 highlight the region’s struggle. See Tobacco Commission Sykes Fiasco and Three Decades of Job Losses.
A look at 2 decades of cable ready socialism in our region:
Acknowledgment: I’d like to thank Grok, an AI by xAI, for helping me draft and refine this article. The final edits and perspective are my own.
