Downey : Rockwell to Begin Layoffs as Space Shuttle Work Ends

Rockwell International Corp. will be laying off about 300 employees at its Downey and Palmdale plants by the end of September because work is winding down on the nation’s next space shuttle.

More than 90% of the layoffs, which will affect engineers, assemblers, quality inspectors and other employees, will be at the Downey plant, Rockwell spokeswoman Janet Dean said this week. Some employees received layoff notices last Monday, she said.

Rockwell has been working on the shuttle since 1987. It is scheduled to be completed in April, which will bring the nation’s shuttle fleet to four.

Dean said the layoffs are part of a normal employment cycle for such projects. “We’re winding down production activities so work requirements are reduced,” she said.

Rockwell has 6,800 employees at its Downey plant and about 900 at its facility in Palmdale, where the shuttle is assembled, Dean said. The Downey plant builds the crew compartment and other shuttle parts, she said.