Wichita, Kan.-based aircraft manufacturer Hawker Beechcraft has announced a 5 percent cut to its work force, or almost 500 jobs, due to the worldwide economic slowdown. Michelle Thornton, one of those laid off last Thursday by the firm, talks about what happened.
ROBERT SIEGEL, host: We tend to take note of job losses when they mount into the tens and hundreds of thousands. But at its root, every single job loss is a story of lives that have to be reordered. Last week at Hawker Beechcraft in Wichita, Kansas, more than 400 people got the word. The company, which makes small aircraft, is reducing its workforce by 5 percent worldwide. And Michelle Thornton is one worker who has become part of that statistic. Welcome to the program.</s>Ms. MICHELE THORNTON (Former Employee, Hawker Beechcraft): Hello.</s>ROBERT SIEGEL, host: How did you learn that you were going to be laid off?</s>Ms. MICHELE THORNTON (Former Employee, Hawker Beechcraft): They gave us two letters. One was from the week before and said that the economic was strong, they had hopeful outlooks, you know, but they were going to be tightening their belts a little bit. But the next week, that Friday before we got the letter, they pulled us into groups and told us it was going to be 5 percent across the board. I mean, you couldn't believe the faces. You just felt like it was more or less like a death scene. It was just horrible.</s>ROBERT SIEGEL, host: And what does it mean for you to be laid off?</s>Ms. MICHELE THORNTON (Former Employee, Hawker Beechcraft): It's a struggle. I mean, we have a child that's in college, and we've got tuition coming up. Our daughter's 21. She's out on her own. We've been trying to help her as well. But there's a lot of plans and things that are going to be put on a backburner, and it's just going to be a very big burden. It's around the holiday time again. It puts a very big damper on it. And with all the people out on layoffs and stuff, it's going to be very hard to try to find a new job.</s>ROBERT SIEGEL, host: You said, we. Are there two incomes in the family?</s>Ms. MICHELE THORNTON (Former Employee, Hawker Beechcraft): Yes, there is mine and my husband's, both.</s>ROBERT SIEGEL, host: And how does his job look?</s>Ms. MICHELE THORNTON (Former Employee, Hawker Beechcraft): Right now, he's hanging in. He works out there as well, at Hawker Beechcraft.</s>ROBERT SIEGEL, host: You know, we often hear arguments about trickle-down economics. And here you work in the production of a product, a small aircraft, which isn't something that work-a-day, ordinary Americans buy. I mean, you have to have money up on top for people and companies to be buying and using planes of this sort. You really depend on prosperity up there.</s>Ms. MICHELE THORNTON (Former Employee, Hawker Beechcraft): It is a very big trickle-down effect. I mean, we're one of the top-paid employees in Wichita. And you know, there'll be no new cars, no campers, boats. It affects going out to eat, going to the movies, going bowling, anything. I mean, it all stops.</s>ROBERT SIEGEL, host: Have you been through something like this before? I mean, have you experienced downturns and layoffs and been recalled?</s>Ms. MICHELE THORNTON (Former Employee, Hawker Beechcraft): Yes. Actually, this is my fourth time through the same company. And I've done this walk before. My children were a lot smaller when I did this. I really thought I had made it through this time with all the seniority that I had. And I mean, it's one thing that you sit back, and you hope and pray that, you know, they'll call you back.</s>ROBERT SIEGEL, host: What exactly were you doing at Hawker Beech - or are you doing at Hawker Beechcraft, assuming you could get re-hired at some point?</s>Ms. MICHELE THORNTON (Former Employee, Hawker Beechcraft): Right now, what I do is, it's called small parts assembly. Little parts come through to you, and you assemble them. And then our parts are fed into a major line, which they go on the plane. They're already put together and assembled, and then they put them together the rest of the way.</s>ROBERT SIEGEL, host: Well, you told me - I mean, obviously, it's distressing and bad news to be laid off, and you're not feeling pretty good about it. Apart from cutting down on expenses over the coming weeks, what else are you going to do? How are you going to fill these hours this week, for example?</s>Ms. MICHELE THORNTON (Former Employee, Hawker Beechcraft): I really don't know. Right now, I'm getting ready to paint my bathroom and put up some new shelves that I had bought previous to layoff, and just basically deep-clean my house and look for a job on and off, and just kind of deal with the days the best that I can, I guess.</s>ROBERT SIEGEL, host: Well, Michelle Thornton, thanks a lot for talking with us about it.</s>Ms. MICHELE THORNTON (Former Employee, Hawker Beechcraft): No problem.</s>ROBERT SIEGEL, host: That's Michelle Thornton of Wichita, Kansas, who was laid off last week from her job at Hawker Beechcraft.