Coca-Cola bottler ceasing Lafayette operations

LAFAYETTE, Ind. (Inside INdiana Business) — North Carolina-based Coca-Cola Consolidated says it is consolidating a number of locations into its new automated distribution center in Whitestown, which will affect workers in Tippecanoe County. In a notice to the state, the bottler says it plans to cease operations at its facility in Lafayette as a result of the move.

According to the notice, the company plans to lay off more than 50 employees in mid-April. However, a spokesperson for Coca-Cola Consolidated said in an email to Inside INdiana Business the company expects a “vast majority” of the affected employees will receive opportunities to remain working at the Whitestown facility.

Some of the employees are represented by the Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store Union Local 1976. The company says it anticipates the decision, when finalized, to be permanent.