SOUTHWEST HARBOR – The Hinckley Co. has cut 50 jobs in the past year in Maine, including a dozen since spring, but the company president said Thursday he expects the work force to remain at 425 for at least the near future.

Business is not booming for the world-famous boat builder, thanks to a slow economy and a still-jittery stock market, but the company is “staying even” with expectations, President Sandy Spaulding said Thursday from the company’s headquarters in Southwest Harbor.

“It’s still a tough market,” Spaulding said. “We’re not immune from the market … but it’s looking a little better.”

Spaulding confirmed reports Hinckley is not filling some jobs as people leave their posts, but added that company leaders do not want to continue reducing the work force through attrition.

“We’re not filling every job, but we don’t want to let natural attrition become something that accelerates,” Spaulding said.

Hinckley employed almost 500 people at this time last year at both its Trenton and Southwest Harbor production plants.

The company is hiring for skilled tradespeople, such as mechanics, electricians and laminators. So while some jobs aren’t being filled, others are being created, depending on orders and specific building needs, Spaulding said.

Hinckley employs about 700 and 425 in Maine, where the company builds its legendary sailboats and popular jet-powered cruisers, ranging in price from $400,000 to $5 million and up.

Hinckley recorded its best sales year ever in 2001. However, the company has struggled along with other luxury boat giants as terrorism, war and a sluggish economy have combined to keep the stock market in flux and investors on edge.

As the stock market flutters and the luxury boat industry struggles, Hinckley has been acquiring new out-of-state assets and bringing its maintenance and repair services closer to its customers.

Fifty Maine jobs were saved last fall when Hinckley closed its Rhode Island production facility, acquired in 2000, and transferred the work to Southwest Harbor, Spaulding said.

In May, the company announced it would consolidate operations again by transferring most of its boat-building staff from Southwest Harbor to the firm’s modern production plant in Trenton.

The latest consolidation should be completed by next month, Spaulding said.

At the same time, the company announced it had acquired a full-service boatyard in Oxford, Md., to service its customers in the mid-Atlantic states.