150 employees laid off by defense contractor
April 12, 2012 7:50 PM
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DUSTY RICKETTS / Daily News

nwfdailynews.com

FORT WALTON BEACH — Local defense contractor DRS Technologies laid off about a quarter of its staff Thursday.

DRS, located at 645 Anchors St. in the Fort Walton Beach Commerce and Technology Park, let go about 150 employees.

“In this time, it’s really aligning our staffing levels with the current business realities and the outlook for the rest of the year,” said Richard Goldberg, senior vice president of public affairs for DRS. “Our business is contract driven, and between the downturns in defense spending and other efficiencies that you try to do to remain competitive, (that) caused us to have to adjust the workforce at that facility.”

DRS’ Fort Walton Beach plant was the only location to have layoffs Thursday. Goldberg said the cut was across the board in every department, including hourly employees and managers.

The company still employs about 450 people in Fort Walton Beach.

“We’re committed to that operation long-term,” Goldberg said. “This adjustment is cyclical. When you do have surges in your business you have to increase your workforce, and when contracts get completed or are completed ahead of schedule, you have to adjust accordingly.

“It’s surely not something we like to do, and there should be no connection between this and the importance we believe that facility has,” he added.

Goldberg said DRS, which is based in Parsippany, N.J., is working with the Workforce Development Board of Okaloosa and Walton Counties and the Okaloosa County Economic Development Council to try to find jobs for the laid off employees.

“We hope business will improve and we’ll be able to bring some people back,” he said.

April 4, 2011
DRS lays off about 100 workers

tribune-democrat.com

JOHNSTOWN — The “adjustment of the work force” a DRS Laurel Technologies executive warned of last week became official Monday, with a cutback of more than 100 workers.

A reduction in federal support for the Bradley family of fighting vehicles and the ongoing budget standoff in Washington are blamed for about 100 layoffs, plus some voluntary departures, company spokesman Richard Goldberg said.

“Our industry takes a big hit every time a continuing budget resolution is passed,” Goldberg said. “It hurts the ability of major projects to start.”

DRS Laurel Technologies builds the Bradley tanks’ mission cables, which allow the onboard computers, radios and GPS system to operate. But the Army plans to replace its longtime standard over the next few years.

“That shift dramatically slowed up the work,” Goldberg said.

The cutbacks are not limited to Johnstown, he added. Other DRS Technologies plants also are facing layoffs.

“As work comes in and projects begin, we will adjust the work force as the customers require,” Goldberg said.

“This is not a happy day for DRS. We value our people but we have to have work to support them.”

Last week, Goldberg confirmed DRS owner Finmeccanica is looking to sell some units to raise up to $800 million.

Goldberg warned Wednesday that layoffs were coming, but stressed the cuts would not be connected to that proposed sale. He repeated that clarification on Monday.

“No decisions have been made on what, if any, assets would be sold,” Goldberg said.

The layoffs bring the DRS Laurel work force in Johnstown to about 400 employees, Goldberg said. That’s down from 550 in September.

This is the fifth round of layoffs since February 2009, when 80 full-time workers and a handful of part-time employees lost their jobs. As recently as May 2008, nearly 900 people were working at the defense contractor’s local facility.