SAN DIEGO, July 12 (UPI) -- NASSCO/General Dynamics in California said Monday it would lay off 290 employees and 270 subcontractors due to slow business.
The layoff total was about half what NASSCO/General Dynamics had said it would cut, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported.
In addition, company President Fred Harris said, "We don't expect significant layoffs over the next year, provided we don't lose any contracts."
The shipbuilder has 4,100 employees on its payroll in San Diego County. The layoffs were announced one day before the completion of the Empire State, a 600-foot tanker ship.
"We were as flexible as we could be, moving people around to jobs where we wouldn't be penalized by customers. We wanted to keep as many skilled men and women as we can," Harris said.
