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Commanding General Visits Tobyhanna Army Depot

TOBYHANNA — A four-star U.S. Army general made a visit to Monroe County on Tuesday. Commanding General Dennis Via toured Tobyhanna Army Depot meeting with...

TOBYHANNA -- A four-star U.S. Army general made a visit to Monroe County on Tuesday.

Commanding General Dennis Via toured Tobyhanna Army Depot meeting with the thousands of people from Lackawanna, Luzerne, Monroe, Wayne County, and beyond who work there.

We had rare access to the army depot in Tobyhanna. It's one of our region's largest employers and is responsible for developing and repairing the latest in electronics and intelligence equipment for the Department of Defense.

But the depot's top commander tells us employees there may still see furloughs and layoffs in their future.

Commanding General Dennis Via took a close look at operations in Monroe County. The four-star ranking commander says this depot in Tobyhanna continues to be one of the Army's crown jewels, even as workload has decreased.

"While that workload has declined and as our budgets decline, this is still an enduring facility. The work they do here is done nowhere else in the Department of Defense," said General Via.

During his tour the general got a firsthand look at how the depot develops and repairs all kinds of electronics.

In 2013, furloughs kept more than 3,500 workers at home for six straight Fridays.

With federal budget uncertainty and possible sequestration, top Army officials realize their workers' concerns are growing again.

"I'm concerned as their commander that I understand and I appreciate how the uncertainty is not welcome," said General Via.

Top officials based at the depot say this special visit was important for workers and their moral.

"That's huge. That really does provide some inspiration and does reassure folks that we are really important and the work that someone does day in and day out is important," said Tobyhanna Army Depot Commander Col. Gerhard Schroter.

While budget uncertainty is upsetting, depot officials say they are working aggressively towards the future, and making sure this facility continues to be relevant for decades to come.

"We're not sitting around saying we may have budget cuts and things like that. We're very aggressive in marketing new workload and a lot of potential workload in the future," said Tobyhanna Army Depot Deputy Commander Frank Zardecki.

Over the last three years, the depot has lost 2,000 workers, reducing the Tobyhanna Army Depot's workforce from about 5,500 employees to the 3,500 employees who now work there.

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