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VIDALIA, La. — Vidalia Mills CEO Dan Feibus, who owns the denim manufacturing company that is also among Vidalia’s top employers, addressed the issue of late paychecks after employees who were supposed to be paid last Friday, Sept. 6, had not been paid as of Wednesday.

Feibus said Wednesday that the company had experienced “internal issues and a payroll company change” that delayed payroll, issues that would be “addressed by tomorrow.”

He also said that a “hardship bonus” would be paid to employees who stay with the company through the ordeal.

“We’re actively raising additional equity to support essential capital expenditures, working capital needs, and to cover both prior and ongoing expenses,” he said. “This funding will also facilitate operational growth and meet other key requirements. The company is on track to expand its workforce, expecting to reach 200 employees within the next 12 months.”

Meanwhile, the denim spinning factory closed down for the remainder of the week, in part because of the threat of Hurricane Francine and also because of equipment issues that would pose a safety risk. Feibus said no dangerous equipment had been allowed to operate and that the factory would be up and running in some capacity by Monday and expects the equipment issue to be resolved in the next 60 days.

“My life’s wrapped up in this,” Feibus said of his commitment to Vidalia Mills and its employees. “As a duty of character, we have too good a business and have to seek the proper funding tools to support our day-to-day operations.”

Vidalia Mills started its ramp-up in 2018 with the purchase of the old Fruit of the Loom factory and by early 2020 began producing denim material.

Vidalia Mills paid the Town of Vidalia $12 million for the Fruit of the Loom factory. However, $8 million of that was granted back to Vidalia Mills for its startup costs. In exchange, Vidalia Mills had to fulfill certain benchmarks and employ 300 people within two years.

Layoffs at Vidalia Mills had been reported around Dec. 2020, taking the number of employees down to 80. At the time, a company spokesperson Bob Antoshak attributed the layoffs to supply and demand issues — with demand decreasing for yarn and increasing for denim fabric — and called it “growing pains.”

Feibus said the company payroll is currently at $9 million but significantly lower than the promised 300 jobs, with 135 people employed currently.

“We went through COVID and they didn’t hit their numbers,” Vidalia Mayor Buz Craft said Wednesday. “We’ve hired legal counsel to move forward to see what our options are and that’s all I can say at this time.”

Feibus said, “Finding good workers is a huge problem,” for Vidalia Denim as it is for many other businesses. “Getting this plant to 200 people is a challenge but it’s completely doable.” However, Feibus said there were plenty of orders on the books and that “total payroll should be $13 to $14 million within 12 months.”