Nearly 300 contract workers face layoffs after Exelon
Corp. switched vendors at three power plants in Pennsylvania, including two in
the midstate.
Layoff notices provided to the
Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry indicate that Aptim
Services LLC is scheduling layoffs this month at Three Mile Island Nuclear
Station in Dauphin County (99 workers), Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station in
York County (108 workers), and Limerick Generating Station in Montgomery County
(89 workers).
Louisiana-based Aptim did not respond to a
request for comment.
Exelon spokesman David
Marcheskie said the workers provided supplemental skilled labor, and included
welders, pipefitters, insulators, and janitorial services.
"We work with organized labor and specialty contractors
to support work at our stations and the number of contract workers needed has
not changed," Marcheskie said. "We simply are contracting work now
through Allied Power Systems instead of Aptim."
Marcheskie said he could not comment further when asked
about the reason behind the change.
Three Mile Island, which has lost $300 million over the
past five years, faces closure in 2019. Exelon has said it cannot afford to
keep the plant open without regulatory changes to support
the nuclear industry.
While many in the region are against the move, opponents
led by gas industry sources have argued that taxpayers should not
be called upon to support the nuclear power sector.
Peach Bottom, meanwhile, has had more success.
Exelon is seeking an extension of its federal operating license that would
extend the plant's life into the 2050s.
Source: Central
Penn Business Journal
No comments:
Post a Comment