Pratt & Whitney will cut 25 percent of the hourly workforce at its Cheshire plant, months after a court ruling prevented the company from closing down the facility.
The announcement today of 129 layoffs of the hourly employees is in compliance with the court ruling and the collective bargaining agreement with the plant’s union because the workforce reduction is on par with a decline in the volume of work at the plant, said Woody Woodward, Pratt & Whitney spokesman.
The plant currently employs 630 workers –110 salaried employees and 520 hourly employees.
Pratt & Whitney will begin a voluntary separation option for workers willing to leave their jobs by Aug. 26. After that date, the rest of the 129 positions will be eliminated through involuntary layoffs. Eligible employees may be transferred to other locations.
Employees taking the voluntary separation will receive one week of severance pay for each year of service, a $5,000 lump-sum payment and medical and dental insurance for 12 months following termination. Involuntary laid off employees will receive severance pay, benefits continuation, outplacement services and retraining benefits.
Pratt & Whitney is based in East Hartford and is a company under the Hartford-based United Technologies.
