Rolling Layoffs Hit North Mississippi

Caterpillar in Oxford will be having rolling layoffs.

Two north Mississippi plants are shutting down temporarily. MPB’s Cari Gervin has more.

April will be the second month this year that AbitibiBowater has suspended operations. The Grenada plant shut down for the month of January, and it has now temporarily laid off its 200 workers until May 1.

AbitibiBowater is the world’s largest producer of newsprint and has been hard hit by the troubles in the newspaper industry.

The Caterpillar plant in Oxford will also soon be a part of company-wide rolling layoffs.

Caterpillar announced twenty thousand layoffs worldwide in January. Since then, the company has said every division will have temporary shutdowns in the hopes of avoiding more job losses.

The Oxford plant has already laid off its temporary workforce and is down to 175 employees from over 300 a year ago.

Officials have remained tight-lipped about when the closure will occur. The Oxford plant produces hydraulic couplings for Caterpillar’s large equipment like bulldozers.

For MPB News, I’m Cari Gervin in Oxford.