Sikorsky to lay off 200 employees

Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. announced plans to lay off 200 employees, primarily in Connecticut.

Amid military budget cuts, rising costs and economic uncertainty, officials at the Stratford-based company said it was necessary to reduce its workforce to stay competitive.

“Sikorsky continues to look to a promising future, but today we face difficult challenges,” Sikorsky Spokesman Paul Jackson said in a June 27 written statement. “We must do all we can to protect our competitiveness while continuing to invest in our future.”

The layoffs will primarily cut into the company’s Connecticut workforce and a small number of people will be laid off in its operations spread out over eight other states, Jackson said.

“U.S. and international government budgets are shrinking, our costs to compete are increasing, and many customers are delaying purchase decisions amid the economic uncertainty,” Jackson said. “Today we took the very difficult but necessary step of implementing a workforce reduction throughout the enterprise to lower costs in line with business requirements and resources.”

The helicopter manufacturer employs about 8,600 people in Connecticut. The layoffs represent about a 1 percent reduction of its total workforce.

Following the automatic federal budget cuts, known as the sequester, in March, officials at Sikorsky and its parent company, United Technologies Corp., had warned a decrease in military spending would lead to hundreds, if not thousands, of jobs lost.

Military contracts make up 50 percent of Sikorsky’s contracts, with international and commercial sales making up the remaining half. The company has said it plans to decrease its reliance on military sales going forward.