Caterpillar Inc. announced plans on Friday to cut an additional 300 employees over the next 2 months at their facility in Decatur, Ill.
According to the Decatur Herald & Review, the layoffs follow the company's announcement made last month which saw 460 employees being laid off from the same facility. The company announced the layoffs were part of an effort to deal with a slump in the mining business.
"Products built in Decatur are used in the mining industry, which has witnessed weaker market conditions when compared to last year," the company said in a statement, adding that most of the layoffs will affect production workers. "Ultimately, with the softening in this sector, we must take steps to bring production in line with demand."
According to the report, a company spokeswoman Barbara Cox said the actions are necessary in an attempt to bring production in line with demand.
"Products built in Decatur are used in the mining industry, which has witnessed weaker market conditions when compared to last year," Cox said. "While some cost reduction measures such as temporary layoffs, shutdowns and shortened workweeks have already been implemented, further measures must be taken in the near-term."
Caterpillar expects a 50 percent decline in sales of traditional mining equipment and a 15 percent decline in sales of machines from its Bucyrus unit, according to the Chicago Tribune. Overall sales of mining equipment are expected to decline by 30 percent.
The affected employees work in production and support/management roles, with Caterpillar saying the majority of impacted employees are from the production work force.
© 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
