A Rhode Island thermoformer closed abruptly this fall, sending nearly 200 people to the unemployment line.
Matlet Group LLC of Pawtucket shut down with little notice to employees, who arrived for work only to be told their jobs were no more, according to local news reports.
A Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act letter from the company to the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training was dated Oct. 9 and had the same effective date.
A letter to employees indicated the 180 layoffs were permanent.
The closure, the company said in the WARN letter, was "a result of unforeseen business circumstances." The company, in the employee letter, said it had a "significant downturn in business."