120 losing jobs as Polaris Boats shutting Syracuse plant

SYRACUSE, Ind. (AP) - A boat manufacturer is shutting down a northern Indiana plant, idling 120 workers.

Polaris Boats LLC said in a notice Monday to the Indiana Department of Workforce Development that it planned to immediately lay off 10% of its workforce while it prepares to close its Syracuse plant. Additional layoffs will occur by mid-summer. The company expects to complete the shutdown between July 1 and July 14.

Some affected employees will have job opportunities at Polaris Boat’s two Elkhart locations, The Journal Gazette reported.

Steven Ott, the company’s vice president of human resources, cited challenges it was facing “in conjunction with the global coronavirus pandemic” as factors in the closing. The company said it would no longer produce three boat brands made at the Syracuse plant.