Ricky Newson walked into a company-wide Porter-Cable meeting at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday. He walked out of that meeting wondering how much longer he would have a job.

A 27-year veteran of Porter-Cable, Newson was one of the first to learn that Black & Decker, parent company of Porter-Cable, is relocating Porter-Cable's portable power tools assembly division and its reconditioning unit on Phillips Road to Reynosa, Mexico, and McAllen, Texas.

''They called us into a meeting first thing (Tuesday) morning to announce that assembly was leaving,'' said Newson, whose job in the company's fabrication division was not affected by the layoffs. ''They did not say how much longer the rest of us would be here.''

Consolidating the two divisions will result in a net loss of 350 Jackson jobs - 300 hourly and 50 salaried employees, said Charley Brown, president of Black & Decker's Global Operations and Integration in the Industrial Tools Division. Black & Decker will still employ nearly 1,300 at its Jackson plants after the layoff, Brown said.

Towson, Md.,-based Black & Decker purchased the Pentair Tools Group - which consists of Porter-Cable/Delta, DeVilbiss Air Power Co., Oldham Saw and FLEX - in October for $775 million in cash. The acquisition was expected to save Black & Decker nearly $65 million by year end. Black & Decker (BDK) closed Tuesday's trading day up 1 cent at $84.39 a share on volume of 483,700.

The company laid off nearly 75 people from non-manufacturing jobs at Porter-Cable and DeVilbiss in October, and the feeling among employees then was that more cuts were to come.

''We came together as two companies that had two full staffs,'' said Brown, who will also be leaving the company when his position expires at the end of January. ''Now we are removing those redundancies.''

Reducing Porter-Cable's staff could take until November, Brown said. Those employees losing their jobs will receive a 60-day notice, he said. They also will receive a severance package based on their number of years with the company, but Brown declined to discuss specifics of the package.

Newson works in Porter-Cable/Delta's fabrication unit, forming sheet metal for tools and and cabinets, not the division where the layoffs are occurring. Still, he worries for his friends, some of whom he has known for more than 25 years.

''You could see those people in assembly were upset,'' he said. ''Some of them have been there longer than I have.''

Barbara Lucas, senior vice president for Black & Decker Public Affairs, said Tuesday that manufacturing employees outside of Porter-Cable's assembly division and the Phillips Road reconditioning unit are in little danger of losing their jobs.

''There are no plans to close the Jackson plant,'' she said. ''We are closing the plant in (West Jefferson,) North Carolina. No other plants will close.''

In fact, Black & Decker is transferring some of Oldham's manufacturing business to Jackson, said Tommy McClure, Oldham's human resource manager in North Carolina.

''We received the announcement in October that this plant will be closed in its entirety in 2005,'' he said. ''Some of those jobs go to Jackson, some go to Shelbyville, Kentucky, and some go to China.''

Oldham Saw employed 235 people and was one of the largest employers in Ashe County, N.C., McClure said.

Black & Decker is also transferring some manufacturing processes from its Mexico plant to Jackson's DeVilbiss plant, Brown said. Jackson still will experience a net loss of 350 jobs despite the transference of those manufacturing processes.

Porter-Cable will continue to manufacture table saws, portable power tool components, such as gears, while DeVilbiss will continue manufacturing its full line of portable compressors and generators, Brown said.

Despite reassurance from company officials, Newson still worries for his job, and for his friends.

''They are going to have to find a new job, and it makes me feel pretty bad,'' he said entering the BP gas station on North Highland Avenue after work Tuesday. ''If the politicians don't step in and do something pretty soon, all the jobs will be gone. Looks to me like it's all about the dollar.''