Asarco plans layoffs at Pinal operations

Pinal

Hayden, AZ- ASARCO smelter, 1940s

Casa Grande Dispatch

Copper-mining giant Asarco announced plans Friday to shut down a Pinal County ore concentrator and may lay off more than 200 workers.

Asarco said in a press release that “current market conditions” require cutbacks in personnel and operations.

However, the announcement came the same day copper prices saw a surge on the stock market, ending a downward trend.

The layoffs, which could occur by the end of October, could involve up to 211 hourly workers at the company’s mill in Hayden and nearby Ray Mine as well as other sites in southern Arizona.

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