Meet the American small town that's becoming the 'poster child for hard times' as the largest employer shuts down | Fortune

"A pall hung over the room just as it hung over the holiday season in Lexington, Nebraska. "Suddenly they tell us that there's no more work. Your world closes in on you," said Alejandra Gutierrez. She and the others work at Tyson Foods' beef plant and are among the 3,200 people who will lose their jobs when Lexington's biggest employer closes the plant next month after more than two decades of operation."

"Hundreds of families may be forced to pack up and leave the town of 11,000, heading east to Omaha or Iowa, or south to the meatpacking towns of Kansas or beyond, causing spinoff layoffs in Lexington's restaurants, barbershops, grocers, convenience stores and taco trucks. "Losing 3,000 jobs in a city of 10,000 to 12,000 people is as big a closing event as we've seen virtually for decades," said Michael Hicks, director of the Center for Business and Economic Research at Indiana's Ball State University."

"Tyson says it's closing the plant to "right-size" its beef business after a historically low cattle herd in the U.S. and the company's expected loss of $600 million on beef production next fiscal year. All told, the job losses are expected to reach 7,000, largely in Lexington and the surrounding counties, according to estimates from University of Nebraska, Lincoln, shared with The Associated Press. Tyson employees alone will lose an estimated $241 million in pay and benefits annually."

Tyson Foods will close its beef plant in Lexington, Nebraska, after more than two decades, eliminating 3,200 jobs. The closures are expected to produce about 7,000 job losses in Lexington and surrounding counties. Tyson cites a historically low U.S. cattle herd and an anticipated $600 million loss on beef production next fiscal year as reasons for right-sizing the business. Tyson employees will lose an estimated $241 million in pay and benefits annually. Hundreds of families may relocate to Omaha, Iowa, Kansas, or other meatpacking towns. Local businesses face spinoff layoffs, and longtime immigrant pathways to homeownership and education face threat.

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