December 2, 2010. Staples Heartland location in Mississauga, December 2, 2010.J.P. MOCZULSKI/The Globe and Mail
About 200 employees will be out of work when the Staples customer service call centre in Regina is downsized later this year.
Spokeswoman Madalina Secareanu says in an email that the office supplies company made the difficult decision to reduce operations starting in November.
An earlier report suggested that Staples planned to close down the Regina call centre, resulting in the loss of 700 jobs.
Secareanu says the company is continually evaluating as it reshapes its business. She also says Staples will assist in the transition of affected employees.
John Hopkins with the Regina Chamber of Commerce says the closure is a big hit, but there are many positions to fill at other companies.
Hopkins says the closure might be linked to a very tight labour market in Regina, which makes it tough to fill positions which have higher-than-average turnover rates.
"Certainly it's going to be devastating for those people who have lost their jobs, but we are still creating opportunities here, so the sky is not falling," Hopkins said Wednesday.
He noted that there are almost 3000 jobs posted on the SaskJobs website.