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NORTHERN UTAH -- The troubled economy in Northern Utah got quite a bit worse Tuesday. The ax finally fell at a Utah rocket company that's a mainstay of the space program. ATK, also known as Alliant Techsystems, gave 550 workers their walking papers.
It's a tough blow, especially in Northern Utah, where several other large firms have had big layoffs. "Lot of people without jobs and families going without food," said Ashley Hardy of Tremonton. "And it's hard."
This day has been long-awaited. ATK announced the layoffs a couple of months ago, largely because the space shuttle is being phased out. But Tuesday was the day employees found out who would stay and who would go. Some of the layoffs are at the old Hercules rocket plant in Salt Lake County. A few are in Clearfield. Most of the layoffs are at the old Thiokol facility west of Brigham City.
"It was a tough day here and throughout all our sites," said George Torres, a spokesman for ATK Space Systems.
The layoffs can't really be blamed on the general economic downturn. It's happening because two of ATK's biggest products are reaching the end of their lifespan. The bad news reflects an important turning point in the space program. After more than 30 years, one of the most visible products any company ever took to market is on the verge of becoming history.
"The shuttle retires the end of 2010," Torres said. "So this is a natural decline on that."
The Minuteman 3 Missile program is also ending. ATK's future hopes will ride with the Ares rocket, soon to be test launched, and on a diversified product base.
Box Elder County sees some hope on the job front. New facilities are being built by Procter and Gamble. Several other companies are considering moving into the Brigham City area. Employment counselors also say jobs are available in other parts of the state if ATK workers are willing to relocate.
"So there're definitely jobs out there," said Kristen Donoviel in the Brigham City office of the Utah Department of Workforce Services. "It's just a matter of where they want to transfer into and where their interests are best suited."
But she acknowledges that Box Elder County has special problems because of big layoffs from several other companies. "Around here (it's) probably a bit more grim than outside," Donoviel said.
ATK is arranging a job fair for outgoing employees. Organizers say they've had surprising success lining up companies to participate. Some big firms are looking for workers.
So it's not an entirely bleak picture.
E-mail: hollenhorst@ksl.com
