In an 11-page document to Cabela’s employees in Sidney, NE, Bass Pro Shops CEO Johnny Morris said Bass Pro is continuing to work on evaluating which jobs will stay in Sidney.

The announcement follows this year’s purchase of Cabela’s by Bass Pro for more than $4 billion. The deal was completed on September 25.

Many Nebraskans are concerned about how the merger have affect jobs in Sidney, a city of about 6,800 where Cabela’s has employed 2,000 people in recent years.

According to the letter obtained by The World-Herald, Morris said Bass Pro plans to keep Cabela’s information technology division, which employs 125 people; as well as a “significant” part of Cabela’s accounting operations  in Sidney. The distribution center will also will remain open

Cabela’s stores in Sidney as well as stores in Kearney and La Vista in the state will remain open.

Outside of Sidney, Cabela’s credit card operation will remain in Lincoln, NE, according to the letter, as well as call centers in Grand Island, Kearney, North Platte and Lincoln in the state. The call centers employ approximately 350 people.

Ralph Castner, who had been Cabela’s chief financial officer, will serve as CFO for the combined company in Springfield. Sarah Kaiser, director of Diversity and Talent Management at Cabela’s, will become senior vice president of human resources for the combined company; and Sheila Dormann, vice president of accounting and controller at Cabela’s, will become vice president of finance for White River Marine Group, one of Bass Pro’s subsidiaries.

Bass Pro, however, said the integration team is still working on evaluating what positions may be eliminated in Sidney as well as at Bass Pro’s headquarters in Springfield, MO. An additional $10 million has been allocated to extend benefits and pay for employees who will lose their jobs.

“One of our biggest priorities is to be as thoughtful to Cabela’s outfitters and the City of Sidney as we possibly can, and go above and beyond what is required to be very fair and supportive,” Morris wrote in the document.

Employees in Sidney will be consolidated into one of the Cabela’s office buildings. Empty buildings on the Cabela’s campus will “effectively be donated” by Bass Pro to the city of Sidney. Bass will lease them for $1 per year to any qualified businesses that may want to open an operation in Sidney.

CareerArc has been retained to help employees who may have lost their jobs and may need to relocate to find work. An early retirement package is being explored.

The deal, in the works for more than a year, brings Cabela’s 82 stores in the U.S. and Canada into the Bass Pro Shops fold. Bass Pro Shops has 95 stores in the U.S. and Canada.

Morris said when the merger closed on September 25, “As we move forward, we are committed to retaining everything customers love about both Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s by creating a ‘best-of-the-best’ experience that includes the superior products, outstanding customer service and exceptional value our customers have come to expect. We’re also deeply motivated by the potential to significantly advance key conservation initiatives.”

Photo courtesy Bass Pro