More residents of Spencer will be looking for work soon. R.R. Donnelley announced Tuesday that it will cut 160 jobs by closing a printing plant in the northwest Iowa town by March 13. The Chicago based company blames the overall economy for the decision.
Kathy Evert, president of the Iowa Lakes Corridor Development Corporation, says her agency did not receive any advance notice. "We’re attempting to make contacts with their corporate office and find out why Spencer was the site chosen to close," Evert said. "We’ll do all we can to reverse the decision, although that’s very difficult when it’s handled this way."
The individuals who will be losing their jobs range from press operators to administrative specialists to the vice president of operations. The R.R. Donnelley news follows a decision by the largest employer in Spencer to layoff 105 employees. The Eaton Corporation cut about one-fourth of it’s workforce on January 5.
Evert says the people losing their jobs can get help finding a new place of employment through Iowa Workforce Development. "In some cases, we’ve seen where people have worked in these facilities for many, many years and have not had to go out and look for another position. So, there’s one on one assistance, training programs and re-training programs…all of that information will be made.