OXNARD : Layoffs Possible at Weapons Parts Plant

Up to 20 employees could be laid off from an Oxnard manufacturing firm that builds parts for nuclear weapons because of cuts in military spending, federal energy officials said Tuesday.

But the eventual number of layoffs from the EG & G Rocky Flats’ Oxnard facility could be smaller if federal money is available to implement early retirement and voluntary-layoff programs, said Pam Ford, the company’s human resources administrator.

The proposed cuts are part of the Energy Department’s restructuring of the Rocky Flats Plant in Colorado, where up to 700 of 8,000 employees are expected to be laid off this year, followed by 1,000 more next year.

EG & G Rocky Flats is a division of EG & G, a large, high-tech company that helps manage the Rocky Flats nuclear facility for the Department of Energy. The Oxnard facility--formerly Precision Forge--was purchased by the federal Energy Department, which remains the plant’s largest customer for specialized metal castings, Ford said.

Because of security precautions, Ford said employees of the Oxnard facility are not fully informed on the nature of the high-tech components they fabricate.

None of the company’s 73 employees are expected to be laid off for at least four months, and although the company’s long-term prospects are unclear, Ford said the Oxnard facility should remain open.

“The weapons complex is not going away, and we are part of the weapons complex,” Ford said.