Company spokesperson Tony Jewel says, "We'll no longer do the basic research in our labs here that lead to new medicines. Instead, once the medicines have been discovered, we'll do the later stage testing and shepherding through the regulatory process."
The news that psychiatric drugs will no longer be researched or developed at that location comes on the heels of other huge employment blows, 100 employees were laid off at the Barclay's Wilmington Branch last December.
The month before the Valero Refinery shut down altogether leaving another 550 people without jobs. Not to mention hundreds of subcontractors and then there was General Motors. The automaker closed in July leaving 650 people without jobs and in December of 2008 Chrysler shut down its Newark plant leaving 1100 people without work.
"It is a challenging time for the industry and all businesses."
A spokesman for Governor Jack Markell agreed adding efforts are already underway to bring new businesses to Delaware to make up for the job losses.
"Nobody's immune from the trouble that is nationwide. Our job is just to try to make the argument that Delaware can be faster, more flexible and respond more quickly than any place else," said Brian Selander, the governor's spokesman. The AstraZeneca layoffs are so far the largest number of white collar jobs to be lost to Delaware and finding similar positions, especially in research and development won't be easy.
Gayle Larson was laid off from Dupont's Research and Development Division after 26 years and another smaller company after 8 years. The back to back layoffs have forced her to put her home up for sale, a home she's sprucing up herself because she can't afford to pay a contractor to do the work. As for job prospects in her field:
"It's rough, especially at my age, now they want young degreed people. Now I have a lot of courses but not a degree," she said.
Larson plans to change careers completely something workers at AstraZeneca might have to consider, if they can even find another job.
AstraZeneca estimates that about 1,800 research and development jobs will be eliminated by 2014.
