LIMESTONE – Defense Finance Accounting System officials at the Loring Commerce Centre confirmed Friday that a minimum of 80 new jobs will be coming to the DFAS center.

Larry Conrad, Loring DFAS director, said he expects that the number of new jobs starting early in January 2003 will be considerably more than the 80 announced this week by the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Sen. Susan Collins.

“We are very happy about this development,” Conrad said Friday afternoon. “The official word is that 80 is the minimum number. Most, if not all, of these jobs will be filled locally,” Conrad said. “We are working on a hiring plan now, and we will be hiring shortly after the first of the year.”

The DFAS center, in operation for eight years, has 252 employees, including 32 military personnel. The number of employees has dropped from a high of 379 people in 1999.

Conrad said he was certain that the new jobs are coming to Loring because of the reputation of workers there.

“Our performance records of customer service and cost effectiveness are certainly key factors in us getting these new positions,” Conrad said. “The decision to increase the number of employees here is because of what we have accomplished.”

Brian Hamel, Loring Development Authority president and CEO, agreed with Conrad.

“This is outstanding for the DFAS center, which we know is the cream of the crop in the DFAS organization,” Hamel said. “It is wonderful news for the civilian work force.”

Hamel and the LDA had raised concerns about the dwindling number of positions at the Loring DFAS. The center was rated as one of the best in the country and in the DFAS system.

“We had approached Sen. Collins and the entire delegation a year ago,” Hamel said Friday afternoon. “We wanted the military to take a good hard look at DFAS at Loring.

“The federal government saw the light, and here we are,” Hamel continued. “We were concerned that the Air Force was not looking at Loring for DFAS expansion.”

The Loring DFAS recently went through a $6 million renovation of its building and operations. The renovation increased the capacity of the facility to 525 employees.

Hamel also thinks the number of new positions will be higher than 80.

“As they continue to be cost effective, there will be more expansion,” Hamel said. “These are good jobs, with little turnover.”

Hamel said most of the jobs lost at DFAS have involved military personnel. He said the new positions had a price tag of $4 million attached to them. That comes out to $50,000 a year per position, including fringe benefits.

There are many workers in northern and central Aroostook County who are underemployed, and many others who are working at two jobs to make ends meet, the LDA executive said.

“This raises the bar for employees,” he said.

The DFAS center does finance and accounting work for the U.S. Air Force Combat Command. It serves 18 U.S. bases and 20 Air National Guard units in 22 states and two foreign countries.

The jobs coming to Loring are from a realignment of accounting and financial operations in Europe, according to DFAS Director Thomas R. Bloom in a news release issued this week. The realignment is expected to save the government $143 million in the fiscal year.