200 Laid Off at Troubled Wheelchair Company : Economy: The action by Everest & Jennings is the latest cutback by a local business that has contributed to a general slowdown in the county.

A Camarillo wheelchair company that once dominated the worldwide market has laid off 200 workers--about a third of its local work force--in a quick attempt to stabilize the financially reeling corporation.

The layoffs at Everest & Jennings International Ltd. are the latest in a series of cutbacks by area businesses that have contributed to a general slowdown in the county’s economy, according to economic experts.

In addition to the Everest & Jennings’ workers, another 670 workers in the county have been laid off in recent months by such firms as Northrop Corp., Raytheon Co. and Texaco.

“This is the worst I’ve seen it since 1969,” said Ralph Chumacher, president of the Ventura County Economic Development Assn. “I think it reflects the mood of the whole economy in the United States.”

James Esmay, dean of the business school at Cal Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks, said he expects layoffs among various businesses in the county to continue.

“I don’t think there is any question that the economy has slowed down,” Esmay said. “Whether we are in a recession, we still won’t know for a couple of quarters.”

The Everest & Jennings employees, were notified Tuesday and Wednesday that they were being laid off. Company officials said they hope that the layoffs are only temporary, but would not speculate when any workers might be rehired.

“Our company has been going through a difficult period,” said a company official who asked not to be identified. “The fact is, there was a need to reduce our costs very quickly and very decisively. These are the hard actions you have to make to protect the remaining positions.”

The company, which has already cut about 350 workers worldwide since December, is not anticipating more cuts, officials said. The employees laid off this week range from salaried managers to assembly workers.

“We will be meeting with the remaining people to make sure they understand the situation,” the official said. “What we’re trying to do is steady the business.”

The company--which made wheelchairs for Franklin D. Roosevelt and Sir Winston Churchill--has been struggling to recover from a disastrous attempt to diversify into other medical products during the 1980s.

In 1989, the company lost $42.1 million on sales of $183.9 million due mainly to restructuring costs, inventory writedowns and costs of starting new products.

In two letters written last week to Everest & Jennings, Equity Pacific Ltd., a major shareholder in the company, said payments on $14 million in loans it made to the wheelchair manufacturer are overdue.

Top officials at Equity Pacific refused to comment on the matter. But a source at Equity Pacific said the quick layoff decision could have been prompted by the complaints about overdue loan payments.

“Something had to be done to bring spending in line with revenues,” the source said.

Although most of the laid-off workers at Everest & Jennings were told that Wednesday was their last day of work, some will be kept on for another month, depending on the nature of their jobs, the Everest & Jennings official said.

“We still hope to recall the workers as quickly as we can, but it’s uncertain,” he said.