Corning’s mayor says the largest employer in the northeast Arkansas city of is laying off most of its workforce, the AP reports. Mayor Dewayne Phelan said Tuesday that the L.A. Darling Co. factory will lay off between 130 and 140 workers starting Oct. 1. That’s in addition to 109 workers already idled whose layoffs will be extended.
The factory produces displays for retail stores, and Phelan says company officials told him it has to wind down production because of a slowdown in orders.
The plant will be down to about 40 workers after the layoff.
Phelan says the factory has employed up to 800 people.
Corning has a population of 3,377 and Phelan says the job losses are a major economic blow.
The company said it would issue a press release Wednesday.