About 250 employees at Lockheed Martin's Eagan facility found out Thursday that their jobs are being cut as a result of the company's previously announced plan to close the operation by 2013. That's about 100 less than originally announced in November as the Bethesda, Md.-based defense company offered transfers to about 750 instead of its previously planned 650 employees.
The layoffs will begin in March and be phased in over the next two years, said spokeswoman Peggy Mullikin. She said most workers getting laid off have jobs in general administration, finance and information technology.
Most of the 750 offered transfers are engineers who work on communications systems used on military ships and aircraft. Mullikin said employees being offered transfers to facilities in Owego, N.Y.; Manassas, Va., and San Diego have been asked to provide preliminary answers on whether they're interested. That way some who have been told they're being let go may still have the opportunity to apply for the new jobs elsewhere, she said.
Lockheed Martin has said the moves are being done to trim costs, and should save it about $150 million over the next 10 years.
Lockheed Martin plans to try to sell the 50-acre, 623,000-square-foot facility. Over the years it has housed the Univac division of Sperry Rand and Loral Corp. It became part of Lockheed Martin in 1996 when Lockheed Martin acquired Loral's electronics and systems-integration business.
Peak employment during the time Lockheed Martin owned the facility was about 3,000 in the late 1990s.
The only uncertainty at this point is the future of about 190 Eagan employees who work on air traffic control system software. No decision will be made on their futures until the Eagan complex is closed, Mullikin said.
Susan Feyder • 612-673-1723
