ATK lays off another 134 aerospace employees

On Tuesday, Alliant Techsystems Inc. informed 134 employees that they were out of work immediately. The end of the space shuttle program and a decision to change the focus of the next-generation ARES space exploration program led to the reduction in force, the fifth for the company’s aerospace division in the past two years.

The layoffs, which include 51 voluntary retirements, impact employees at ATK facilities in Promontory, Clearfield and West Valley City. The eliminated positions are across the board, from engineers and technicians to office workers. All will receive severance packages based on their years or service to the company. ATK’s aerospace systems division now has about 2,100 employees, 45 percent of its total in early 2009. Salt Lake Tribune