Around 2,800 jobs to be cut as Tyson Foods closes chicken plants

by Kim Souza (ksouza@talkbusiness.net)

Tyson Foods announced Monday (Aug. 7) plans to close four chicken processing plants in North Little Rock, Noel and Dexter, Mo., and Corydon, Ind., over the next three quarters. The news followed a significant financial loss in the third fiscal quarter.

While Tyson did not confirm the total number of jobs eliminated with the closures, estimates from local communities total 2,800 plant positions. The majority of those will be in Noel, with an estimated 1,500 jobs and full poultry production complex closing its doors in October. North Little Rock’s further processing plant will lose an estimated 200 jobs in October. The plants in Dexter, Mo., and Corydon, Ind., employ 500 and 600, respectively, according to local community statistics. Those plants are slated to close in early 2024.

Tyson Foods CEO Donnie King said the decision to shutter the plants was “gut-wrenching” but necessary as the older facilities were in need of major capital investments that did not make sense. The North Little Rock plant is 55 years old and was acquired by Tyson Foods in 1969 from Prospect Farms. It is a further-processing plant and not a slaughter facility. The Noel, Mo., complex includes a processing and kill plant, truck shop and service center and is a major employer in McDonald County. The Dexter, Mo., and Corydon, Ind., facilities are also older further-processing plants.

https://talkbusiness.net/2023/08/around-2800-jobs-to-be-cut-as-tyson-foods-closes-chicken-plants/

2.7% jobless rate in May a new low for Arkansas; tourism sector adds more than 10,000 jobs

by Talk Business & Politics staff (staff2@talkbusiness.net)

There is no sign of a looming recession in Arkansas’ job market. The state jobless rate hit a record low of 2.7% in May, which followed a record low of 2.8% in April. Also, three of the state’s largest job sectors set record employment in May.

The number of employed in Arkansas during May was an estimated 1,343,657, up 16,675 jobs, or 1.25%, compared with May 2022, and above the 1,339,400 in April, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report posted Friday (June 17). The May numbers are preliminary and subject to revision.

Arkansas’ labor force, the number of people eligible to work, in May was 1,380,752, up 0.74% from the 1,370,505 in May 2022 and above the 1,378,421 in April. The state’s labor force participation rate was 57.5% in May, unchanged from April, and below 57.7% in May 2022.

https://talkbusiness.net/2023/06/2-7-jobless-rate-in-may-a-new-low-for-arkansas-tourism-sector-adds-more-than-10000-jobs/