Workers protest layoffs at California greenhouse

The downturn in the economy has caused Nurserymen’s Exchange in Half Moon Bay, Calif., to make changes to its business plan, reports The Mercury News. Part of these changes included the dismissal of 132 of the company’s 300 workers this month. The grower is the city’s third largest employer.

Some of these workers are protesting the layoffs and have contacted the United Farm Workers of America for assistance in trying to get their jobs back. Union vice president Efren Barajas helped to organize the laid off workers, who he says most are between 45 and 65 years old.

A statement released by Nurserymen’s Exchange president Jack Pearlstein indicated the economic downturn caused the company to make “significant adjustments”.

Pearlstein wrote that “The ongoing recession and its impact on sales have made this one of the most challenging times our family-owned business has faced in its over 60-year history.”