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Olathe family feeling heat of local layoffs

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Although unemployment numbers continue to decline or stabilize nationally, it appears Johnson County continues to be hit with a number of layoffs not seen in years.

Aside from the 829 people losing their jobs with Sprint, Lenexa’s QuadGraphics will be laying off 95 employees by the end of the month. It’s a trend Johnson County isn’t accustomed to.

"It's a scary thing to lose your job when he's the only income and we have four kids to take care of,” said Olathe resident Monica Krumm, whose husband was given the pink slip last week from QuadGraphics after 13 years.

The company is based out of Wisconsin and is one of the largest printing manufacturers in the country. Krumm’s husband, August, has been a mechanic at their Lenexa site for 13 years and was totally blindsided when he found out everyone’s last day will be Feb. 27.

"I think everybody out there needs to know that the economy is tough and they need to prepared for things like this,” said August Krumm.

With the layoffs from Sprint and QuadGraphics, January alone has already set the highest number of quarterly reported job losses (924) for the area in several years, according to Workforce Partnership, a local job placement agency. The only caveat is that layoffs only have to be reported if they consist of 50 or more employees. Workforce Partnership oversees Johnson, Wyandotte and Leavenworth counties.

A report released Thursday by Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc. revealed January saw the highest number of layoffs in the U.S. in 6 months (75,114), a 42 percent increase from January 2015.

What do you do if you’re laid off?

According to  Scott Anglemyer, director of Workforce Partnership:

  • Take advantage of unemployment benefits right away. Don’t feel guilty.
  • Act quickly. It can take longer than expected to find new employment.
  • Think outside the box when searching. You may have other gifts/tools to utilize.
  • Take advantage of all resources and networking. Some job placement agencies will help pay for further education.
  • Stay positive. It will shine through during your search.
  • Go to KansasWorks.com.

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Josh Helmuth can be reached at josh.helmuth@kshb.com.

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