Thank you Fast Eddie: Pa. in top 5 states touched by mass layoffs

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Tyco Electronics' moves to lead to job cuts

Tyco Electronics Ltd., a Berwyn electronics manufacturing company, will close two of its Pennsylvania plants in the next nine to 12 months, leaving more than 500 workers jobless. The company said yesterday it hoped to retain 40 percent of its 600 workers at its East Berlin plant in Adams County when it shifts work to other plants in Asia, South Carolina and central Pennsylvania. The company also plans to move work from its Reading plant in Berks County to Juarez, Mexico, which will leave 145 workers jobless. Workers will receive a standard severance package according to their years of service and pay scale, the company said. At the end of this month, Tyco Electronics is to be split from its parent, Tyco International Ltd., which has its operating headquarters in West Windsor, N.J. - Joseph Galante

Pa.in top five states touched by mass layoffs

Pennsylvania was one of the top five states affected by mass layoffs in May, a fact partly attributable to its size. In May, the Labor Department said, 5,412 initial claims for unemployment insurance were filed by people who had been let go in large-scale reduction-in-force layoffs of 50 or more people, up from 3,500 a year ago. There were 65 such mass layoffs. Pennsylvania and New Jersey were among five states with the largest year-over-year increases in initial claims for unemployment insurance filed by people involved in mass layoffs. In May, 2,936 New Jersey workers filed claims, up from 1,591 a year ago. - Jane M. Von Bergen

Source: Philadelphia Inquirer