RUSSELL, Ky. - It should have been any other work day for Brandon Hicks, Scott Lewis, and the 483 other people who work at Applied Cards Services in Russell, Ky. It wasn't.

Employees were told this morning the Russell facility was being closed, and they were out of a job.

"We were in our morning meeting, getting background on our campaigns that we were going into and our manager told us to go and get on the phones. And then, Charlie Albano - he's a vice president - came and said go back into the meeting room, and then he told us due to the state of the company we were being closed," Hicks, of Kitts Hill, said.

Rumors had been in the air for more than a year that business was bad, but employees said no one expected a full-scale closing.

"I thought there would be layoffs," Sarah Stover, of Worthington, Ky., said, "but not a total shutdown."

"It floored me," Missy Coburn, of Kitts Hill, said. "I had no clue."

"We were always told that we had the best collections records of any site in the company," Alison Burnett of Greenup, Ky., said. "We've always come close to meeting out goals and they're closing us!"

This means 485 will not be looking for work. Some expressed concern about finding employment in a tight market during a tenuous economy. Some said they hoped to find work at the Cingular Wireless customer call center in Grayson, Ky. Others said they would look elsewhere.

"I'll see if the hospital is hiring," Esther Boles, of Ironton said. "I do miss working with patients."

Brian Hildebrandt, vice president for technology and operations at the Russell facility, declined to make a statement about the shutdown but did give The Ironton Tribune a written statement from corporate headquarters.

"Due to the regulatory concerns about the high risks associated with this market sector, the company has lost a significant number of account relationships over the last year. Applied Card has made every attempt to implement alternative business strategies to replace the decreasing volume of business," ACS President Tim Lehmann said in the prepared statement. "The company no longer operate its business model without radical adjustments."

In addition to the Russell facility, ACS is also closing is Beckley, W.Va., site.

According to the company statement, ACS is in the process of implementing new lines of business that will complement existing services. If the company is successful with the new product lines, the statement said the company may reopen the two closed facilities.

Applied Card Systems, affiliated with Cross County Bank, specializes in credit cards for people considered to be high-risk. Those two entities have been the target of criticism, claiming that they prey on low-income customers and use harassment as a standard tactic to collect on debts.

Earlier this month, the Minnesota Attorney general filed a lawsuit against ACS and Cross County bank. The suit alleged that Cross Country Bank pitches credit cards to Minnesotans of modest means or tarnished credit records, claiming cards will help consumers rebuild their credit. But the suit alleged that in reality the cards carry high interest rates, exorbitant fees and hidden costs that only worsen their financial problems.

The suit alleged that when collecting from these cardholders, Applied Card Systems collectors abuse and harasses them, their family members and their co-workers with repeated telephone calls at almost all hours of the day, every day of the week, for months on end, including holidays.