URS Corp. furloughs 3,000 workers amid government shutdown

A San Francisco-based engineering-advisory firm, URS Corp., said Thursday it has furloughed 3,000 employees because of the partial government shutdown and more employees could be affected if the stalemate in Washington drags on.

URS said that those furloughed include workers idled by the closure of the government facility where they work. They have also reduced staffing levels at the direction of the government, the company said in a statement.

“The government shutdown, the continuing effects of sequestration, and uncertainty about the federal budget are all having negative impacts on URS and many other government contractors,” said H. Thomas Hicks, URS’ chief financial officer. “We hope the situation is resolved as soon as possible to avoid additional impact on our federal business and our employees.”

FULL COVERAGE: The U.S. government shutdown

URS has a workforce of about 50,000.

The federal government initially furloughed 800,000 employees, but many workers have been recalled to deal with crises. Other large defense contractors have also announced furloughs.

The Aerospace Corp., based in El Segundo, furloughed about 2,000 workers. Defense giant Lockheed Martin has about 2,400 employees off the job.

That’s costing the economy at least $160 million per workday, according to research firm IHS Inc. If the shutdown continues beyond three or four weeks, economic growth could be cut in half in the last quarter of the year, Moody’s Analytics said.

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