Harley-Davidson to Potentially Layoff 200 Employees at York, PA. Plant

By Sam Bendall - October 4, 2016

According to the Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal Sentinel, Harley-Davidson could expect to layoff 200 employees this fall as the company adjusts motorcycle production following recent slower sales during the past few quarters.

Union sources said many of the layoffs will take place at Harley’s assembly plant in York, Pa., but that a handful will occur at the engine plant in Menomonee Falls, where the company employs approximately 1,000 people, and there will be approximately 35 layoffs at the plant in Tomahawk. The York Daily Record reported that 117 of the layoffs will occur at the York plant, in Springettsbury Township, Pa., that employs approximately 950 members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Local 75.

Harley-Davidson and other makers of cruiser and touring motorcycles have seen their sales fall in recent months. The U.S. market was far weaker than expected, Harley CEO Matt Levatich said following the company’s recent second-quarter earnings announcement.

The company declined to give specifics on the layoffs Wednesday. But in an email, spokeswoman Maripat Blankenheim said: “The company continually reacts to industry and market changes to provide the best products and services to our customers. To that end, as we adjust our production plan to align with 2016 guidance, we are making the necessary changes to right-size the company. As a result, approximately 200 regular and casual union employees will be impacted across our U.S. plants. The majority of impacts are scheduled for the fourth quarter.”

It is unconfirmed if these layoffs are in any way tied to the most recent EPA violation levied upon the company in August 2016.