Cummins Begins Layoffs Of Columbus Workers

Photo: Bill Shaw/WTIU News

Workers at three Cummins manufacturing plants in Columbus will be affected by company-wide layoffs.

Cummins has begun laying off some of its professional staff in Indiana, following last month‘s announcement that major layoffs were coming.

Layoff notices starting going out this week to the engine-maker‘s white-collar workers at its headquaters in Columbus. Job cuts are also expected at Cummins‘ three southern Indiana plants: the Fuel Systems Plant and MidRange Engine Plant in Columbus and the Engine plant in Seymour.

Company spokesman Jon Mills says layoffs were happening on a department-by-department basis this week. He says employees should know the full extent of the job cuts by the middle of December.

Cummins has around 47,000 employees worldwide, and the company announced last month that it would shrink its overall workforce by up to 1,500. About 7,700 of its workers are in southern Indiana. The company said in its third-quarter report that sales were weaker than expected, as the world‘s economy begins to slow.

Cummins now expects sales to be about $1 billion lower for the year than what the company estimated in July.