Conestoga Wood Specialties
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Manufacturing, Furniture |
| Founded | 1964 |
| Founder | Norman Hahn, Samuel Hahn, and others |
| Headquarters | East Earl, Pennsylvania , United States |
Area served | United States |
Key people | Anthony Hahn (CEO), Norman Hahn (owner) |
| Products | Wooden doors and related components for kitchens, bathrooms, and furniture |
Number of employees | 1,200 |
Conestoga Wood Specialties is a producer of wooden doors and related components designed for kitchens, bathrooms, and furniture. Its headquarters are situated in East Earl, Pennsylvania. The company runs five manufacturing facilities located in Washington, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania, with a workforce of around 1,200 employees.
Established in 1964 by brothers Norman and Samuel Hahn along with others, the business originated in a garage in East Earl. It continues to be family-operated by Norman Hahn and additional members of the Hahn family, who belong to the Pennsylvania Dutch Mennonite community. The current CEO is Anthony Hahn, son of Norman. One factory remains near the original East Earl garage at 245 Reading Road. Other plants have been or are situated in Beavertown, Pennsylvania, Darlington, Maryland (closed 2007), Mountain View, Arkansas (closed), Jacksonville, Arkansas (closed), Kenly, North Carolina, Kent, Washington, and Tooele, Utah (closed).
Conestoga Wood Specialties primarily caters to trade clients, including manufacturers placing bulk orders and custom shops requesting individual pieces; the company does not process retail sales.
It ranks among the largest manufacturing employers within Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
Opposition to the Affordable Care Act
The Affordable Care Act, passed in 2010, requires health insurance plans to cover “additional preventive care and screenings” specifically for women. According to guidelines from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), contraception is considered medically necessary to maintain women's health.
Norman Hahn, owner of Conestoga Wood Specialties Corp., opposed this mandate on moral grounds, describing funding certain contraceptives such as Plan B as "sinful and immoral." While Conestoga complied with the requirement to avoid penalties up to $95,000 daily, it initiated legal action seeking an exemption.
In July 2013, the Third Circuit Court affirmed that Conestoga did not meet criteria for a religious exemption. However, in September 2013, the company won an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, which combined its case with Burwell v. Hobby Lobby. Numerous amicus briefs were submitted debating whether for-profit entities could claim religious exemptions.
On June 30, 2014, Justice Samuel Alito announced the Supreme Court’s ruling in favor of Hobby Lobby and Conestoga. The decision recognized that closely held for-profit corporations possess free exercise rights under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, highlighting that RFRA strikes an appropriate balance between religious freedom and governmental interests.
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