Sitel, the Nashville-based call center company that took over Corning Inc.'s photonics testing center in Erwin two years ago, will lay off about 300 workers by the end of the year.

Sitel's Vice President for Marketing Andrew Kokes said the job cuts were the result of the loss of one of the center's major customers. However, he would not identity the company.



All of the affected employees were given eight weeks' notice and the company is working with the state Labor Department and local employers to provide immediate employment and benefits assistance for workers who will lose their jobs.




"Notices were sent out (Tuesday) and the action is based on unforeseen circumstances," said Kokes. "We lost one of our clients and the reduction is not a reflection of the service delivered by the employees."



In a prepared statement, Joel Campos, director of Sitel's Erwin facility, also complimented the quality of the employees by saying the Corning community has provided the company with some of the best talent and skills across the customer care industry.


Sitel offers inbound call handling for customer service requests, technical support and order taking. The company also provides outbaound telemarketing, database and list-building services and direct response marketing.


In addition to call services, Sitel provides outsourcing services for a number of business functions, including order processing and payroll management.


The privately held company started operations in Painted Post in 2008 at 101 Canada Road. Corning Inc. retained ownership of the former telecommunications building and to help the company set up shop in the 45,000 square-foot two-story building, Empire State Development provided a $1.5 million grant, plus another $750,000 from the Governor's Office of Small Cities. Sitel spent about $4 million to renovate the building and intended to employ about 400 workers.


Sitel's downsizing plans come less than a month after another call center in downtown Elmira, American Customer Care, announced its plan to beef up its head count by adding up to 100 new jobs. American Customer Care employs about 140 people at the Iszard's building in downtown Elmira.