Layoffs in Harrisburg

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania mayor Linda Thompson announced yesterday that the city would have to lay off an unspecified number of employees in order to balance its budget, which currently has a $4.3 deficit.

The city’s fire department will bear the brunt of the layoffs. One of Harrisburg’s four fire stations will be closed and an unknown number of firefighters will be laid off.

“There is no illusion about the fact that we are going to have to lay off some staff,” Thompson said. In defense of her choice to layoff firefighters, Thompson commented, “The city’s not going to burn up if we shut down one fire station and lay off a few people.”