Major S.C. companies lay off thousands of workers in auto, food, fitness industries
South Carolina companies were forced to lay off thousands of workers in the past month, according to new state numbers as coronavirus pummels the state’s economy across several industries.
The largest round of layoffs came from MAU Workforce Solutions, which recruits workers for the BMW car plant in Greer, according to a layoff report from S.C. Department of Employment and Workforce. The report states MAU laid off 744 workers on March 31 and 359 on Monday. The BMW plant has halted production until the end of April.
SCDEW requires companies with more than 100 employees to provide advanced notice of plant closings and mass layoffs.
Hamrick Mills, a fabric manufacturing plant in Gaffney, laid off 405 workers as of March 30. Factory output is down in the U.S., as plants seek to limit contact between workers, raw materials are becoming more scarce, and global demand has fallen.
Sunshine Fitness Management, which owns dozens of Planet Fitness gym franchises in the Southeast., laid off 264 workers on Monday, according to the SCDEW. Non-essential businesses, such as gyms, were ordered closed by Gov. Henry McMaster on April 1 to prevent coronavirus spread.
Owning car dealerships for brands such as Toyota and Nissan, Asbury Automotive Group laid off more than 80 workers from its dealerships in Greenville on Friday, said the report.
The third largest U.S. movie theater operator, Cinemark, shut down all of its 345 theaters last month. The SCDEW estimates those closures put 118 South Carolinians out of work.
By the end of March, 64,856 South Carolina residents filed for unemployment benefits, a more than 3,000 percent jump from the beginning of March.
New unemployment numbers from the SCDEW are released on Thursday.
This story was originally published April 7, 2020 at 5:55 PM.
