ORLANDO, Fla. — Hundreds of workers will be looking for new jobs after leaders at two Frito-Lay plants – a manufacturing center on Silver Star Road and a warehouse off Princeton Street – suddenly told employees they were shutting down Tuesday.
Regulatory filings dated Nov. 4 show a total of 468 people were notified of the layoffs Tuesday morning. Frito-Lay will provide the employees at the Silver Star property with 60 days of pay. The 46 affected employees at Parks Oaks will retain their jobs and get paid until May.
The positions include dozens of laborers, mechanics, coordinators and operators, but also the plant director and supervisors. According to archived job postings on Indeed, many of the affected positions made between $25 and $35 per hour.
“The Company is prepared to work with state and local government agencies to assist its employees,” Frito-Lay wrote in the WARN notice announcing the layoffs.
Emotional employees could be seen in the parking lot of the Silver Star location Wednesday. On social media and in job forums, users who claimed to work at the plant described the layoffs as a shock.
It’s not clear what will happen to either facility. County records show Frito-Lay owns the Silver Star location and has not placed the facility on the market as of Wednesday midday.
The Parks Oaks property is owned by a third-party company.
Frito-Lay is also a tenant in a third location, a warehouse on John Young Parkway, that it sold to a real estate firm specializing in distribution space earlier this year. At the time, the company said it would stay on as a tenant at the site.
PepsiCo, which owns Frito-Lay, provided a statement in response to initial questions about the layoffs Tuesday:
“This was a difficult decision, as we know how much this site and its people mean to the Orlando community,” a spokesperson wrote. “This action was driven by business needs, and we are committed to treating every impacted employee with care – providing transition assistance, career support, and pay and benefits during this time.”
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