100 jobs eliminated at Pratt & Whitney

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Pratt & Whitney says it is laying off 80 hourly employees and eliminating 20 other positions through buyouts amid falling demand for repair work.

Company spokesman Bryan Kidder says the completion of a program to build engines for the F-22 fighter was another factor in the reductions.

The Hartford Courant reports the layoffs occurred at the company's East Hartford location and the buyouts were split between East Hartford and a Middletown location.

The company facilities in East Hartford employ more than 1,500 workers in a machinists' union and about 8,000 salaried employees.

The jet engine manufacturer has said it expects business to improve, but it must first get through a few years as the military shifts to new fighter jets that require different engines.