The Department of Labor and Industry will temporarily close the Unemployment Compensation Service Center in White Township, Pennsylvania while officials try to determine the cause of a mysterious odor that has sickened some employees.

Employees were sent home Thursday and the building was closed Friday due to an odor, described by officials and employees as a sweet, maple syrup smell, that permeated the building at 630 Kolter Drive. The odor has been a problem at the building off and on since at least October.

Starting Sunday, 106 employees at the center have the option of going to the Altoona or Duquesne call centers, said Jonathan Longwill, chief of staff for state Rep. Dave Reed, R-Indiana.

Longwill said employee transfers could not be mandated without a week's notice, so the transfer is optional until the following week, when they must report to the other centers.

He said representatives from Labor and Industry and the Department of General Services were in Indiana Friday looking for a temporary facility that could open within two weeks.

"We stressed the need that it's going to remain in Indiana County. That's our priority now at this point,'' Longwill said. "Our concern has been the health and welfare of the folks working there and the second, if it ever came to this, is that the center remains here. It seems like the focus is now starting to shift to that second concern.''

The Indiana UCC center, one of eight call centers in the state, moved into its current location Sept. 1, 2001.

Reed's office has been receiving complaints about the odor and its physical effects from employees and their families for the past few months, and the office requested an investigation by state officials in October.

Employees have complained of itchy and red eyes, nausea, headaches and vomiting, among other symptoms.

"Some folks went to see doctors and have been diagnosed with inflammation in the sinuses,'' Longwill said. "So the doctors have looked and seen physical reactions.''

Labor and Industry implemented a policy that allows the door of the building to be kept open and employees to go outside as necessary when the odor persists, which Longwill said has worsened conditions for employees with the recent cold temperatures.

"We got an influx of calls (Thursday) when it was 2 to 3 degrees. When the folks report to work, they already have to open the door,'' he said.

The company several weeks ago instituted a liberal leave policy with the option to go out for breaks as needed, and employees had been permitted to work at the Duquesne and Altoona centers.

Department officials have stressed over recent months that they have been exhausting their options but they believe there is no health risk to employees.

Air-quality tests, duct and HVAC inspections completed by Labor and Industry; the building's landlord, Capital Venture Properties Inc.; the Department of Environmental Protection and others have yielded inconclusive results for origins of the odor. Tests for antifreeze, volatile organic compounds and chemicals such as ethylene glycol - a chemical found as an ingredient in coil cleaners - and benzoic acids have come back negative. Melted rubber bands were also found on top of some light fixtures.

"We have to give L&I credit. They did the tests that seem somewhat thorough. It was difficult that they were not able to come back with a clear-cut result,'' Longwill said. "But we're hearing from our constituents that there are still physical symptoms, and (Wednesday and Thursday) seemed to be the straw that broke the camel's back.''

Labor and Industry officials could not be reached for comment Friday.