Comments about ‘ATK cuts 12% of Utah work force’

Clarification is in order: The Minuteman Missile System belongs to the Air Force, not NASA.

going right into the holiday season - nice time for a layoff. Good grief, if you know you are going to do it then do it in the spring thereby giving people a chance to find something else. No one hires in the fall and on through the holidays.

Wasn't it just a couple of days ago that an announcement was made that ATK just was awarded a big government contract? Shouldn't they be hiring more people? Something doesn't make sense here, could someone clarify.

This is not anything new for Thiokol. Growing up it was about every 6 months and they would have a round of layoffs.

ATK got a contract to make bullets which are made in the midwest. The local plants do solid rocket motors. Minuteman and RSRM are over so employees are expendable. They like to can the older ones. They cost more.

Torres claims his #1 priority is the employees and their families. Wrong! His number one priority is his own skin. To keep that he has to make sure ATK has a quarterly profit and employees just cost money.

RIF people,
There is life after Thiokol. I use to work there before and after the Morton Thiokol split.
It was a great job and I loved working there, but other things are out there. OK, maybe now is not a great time to be job hunting, I agree!
Best of luck to you all!

The contract you're talking about was awarded to a different division of ATK that is based in Clearfield and is for supplying ammunitions to Afghanistan. The majority of these layoffs came from the plant out in Promontory where they build the spaceshuttle boosters and missiles. These layoffs have also been in the works for months, long before that contract was awarded.

ATK has three divisions; all three divisions have some type of footprint here in Utah. The 100 plus million dollar contract was to produce ammunition for the Afghanistan army. The division that is responsible for this contract is headquartered in Clearfield. The ammunition will be made back east.

Ammunition facility is in Jackson County, Missouri - Independence to be exact.

Maybe it's time to find a NEW job....???

Sign of economic recovery... Unemployment is on rise so and Wall street is "rallying" too. Stock market not anymore indicating market.

I hate to see anyone loose a job. Employment is a lagging indicator in a recovery. Too you conservatives, lagging means it's one of the last things that improves.

There a couple of problems here. Remember how Fox News and talk radio tried to blame the liberal press for a slowing economy by arguing bad news about the economy creates fear and fear slows buying?

As a leader you walk a fine line. I believe unemployment will hit around 11%. Without action it would have reached 14%.

There more bad news for employment. Companies are going to try to stay lean, some jobs aren't returning, those over 45 will be hit much harder I believe the new equilibrium be set at lower income levels.

The wealthy play and workers pay. The last expansion of the economy was fueled by low interest and credit. Both those fuels were consumed.

The stock market is a leading indicator. It shows investor's future confidence in the economy.

Why are we still in a recession? Good question. Many economists agree that we would have been out of the recession (the longest since 83) had there not being the massive government spending by Obama and the resultant threat of new taxes on business. Sadly only 15% of the so-called stimulus was even spent for actual stimulus thus far so not only has the Obama spending NOT helped unemployment is has extended the recession as well. Had we elected a president that actually "UNERSTOOD" economics and who had either been a governor or a CEO then most likely we would have had large TAX CUTS for business which would have definitely stimulated the economy and halted the layoffs. This is exactly what Reagan did to get the economy going after the sorry Carter years.

Its good to see "toys" of destruction" to humanity (Minuteman missiles) made redundant. Maybe now we as a people can find reputable employment that benefits mankind instead of destroying it.
Lets help out these families find work to lighten the burdens..

This layoff is the second one in 6 months. I got caught in the first round when only 350 got laid off. If Aries gets axed by the Obama administration, look for another round from ATK in April or sonner of about 1000.

The sad thing is that ATK has pretty much announced that there will be another round of layoffs in January. This is why I never wanted to work there and I look forward to a life after ATK and I wish those that have lost there jobs the best of luck.

"Many economists agree that we would have been out of the recession (the longest since 83) had there not being the massive government spending by Obama and the resultant threat of new taxes on business,"

Are you wrong. For you conservatives; a recession is a drop in demand. You can't study economics without studying the paradox of thrift. People and companies spend less during recessions further dropping demand. This deepens the recession workers get cut.

You sure reinforced my view of conservatives as being uneducated.

It was the government spending for WWII that ended the Great Depression.

I know not to expect a conservative to do any research. Lazy people would rather become parrots. Japan, Germany, France and China are all out of recession. China's economy will grow by 8% this year. How did these nations get out of recession?

Government stimulus spending is the answer.

We have our government cutting a program. The result is unemployment. We have a conservative arguing cutting government spending would increase jobs. None are so blind as those that won't see.

Saw this coming last year after the election.

ATK in Utah has no commercial enterprise - 100% government dependant.

Utah is too red in a blue federal congress to ever hope to win any big government contracts for the next 8 - 16 years.

Can't have your cake and eat it too.

I know it's nit picky, but DesNews repeated one of the euphemisms Corporate America invented to make employees who are laid off, let go, pink slipped feel the action the company is taking is less dreadful. That word is "affected," as in, "Due to circumstances beyond our control, the company is restructuring, and your job has been affected." This is instead of, "The company is reducing its workforce, and we decided you would be one of the people we lay off."

To clarify the comment from "Compassionate" thinking that Minuteman has been made redundant, it's still our main line of defense and is very much alive. The contract of the Propulsion Replacement Program for Minuteman came to a close. These missiles are now up-to-date and ready for use. They serve much as a deterent, rather like having a gun in your home to help protect you and your family should the need arise. Presumably "Compassionate" doesn't own a gun and will rely on his/her neighbor in times of trouble.