Monday's news that Carbon County's largest employer will sell a major component of its business to a Florida-based company is generating plenty of comments and concern.

Kovatch Corporation in Nesquehoning, will transition ownership of the emergency vehicle business to REV Group by late this week.At this time, company officials say local employees won't be affected by the move.In fact, says the company, there could be an increase in the number of employees at the local site once the transaction is complete. We certainly hope that's the case.The firm already employs 700 to 900 and is a force in the local economy.Still, it's easy to understand the feeling of concern and maybe even anxiety among the rank and file."I certainly hope the business will grow," commented a woman Monday on the Times News Facebook page. She said it's a shame something would be removed from the world headquarters of a local business.A Tamaqua man compared the sale to what happened with the textile industry."Didn't they say something like that when Morgans was sold," he asked on Facebook."Exactly," responded another. "They all say that in the beginning and then a year later all the work will be shipped out of state or probably more than likely overseas."The comments are understandable after what happened several miles away at J.E. Morgan Knitting Mills in Hometown, just over the county line.The plant, which had begun in Tamaqua in the 1950s, was a homegrown success story just like Kovatch Corporation.Morgan Mills was not only Schuylkill County's largest employer, but the largest maker of thermal underwear in the world.However, the place was acquired by Dawson International PLC in 1984.Then in 1999, some 1,000 Morgan employees learned that a sale to Sara Lee Corporation was imminent. The handwriting was on the wall. It was a worst-case scenario.Local jobs vanished, and today, Morgan Mills is only a memory.Kovatch, like Morgan Mills, has a proud local history. The place was founded by John "Sonny" Kovatch II in 1946. Manufacturing facilities were opened at the junction of routes 209 and 54 in 1950. Since then it has grown and blossomed into a major employer, still family-directed.On Monday, John Kovatch IV posted a response on social media, saying, in part: "Our employees are still full-time and not going anywhere. Headquarters will stay in Nesquehoning."Kovatch Corporation is cherished in Carbon County, and we hope it stays that way. The entire region needs Kovatch.There's always a sense of pride and stability when a local industry makes its decisions locally.Certainly, the fate of Morgan Mills shows what can happen when ownership and key decisions are transferred out of the area.We're not comparing apples to oranges here, nor are we comparing fire engines to thermal underwear.Instead, we're comparing jobs to jobs.And we've already lost far too many.Hopefully, Kovatch will continue to flourish, and will do so locally.By Donald R. Serfass |

dserfass@tnonline.com