About three dozen employees at Jamestown Metal Products LCC will laid off, the company confirmed Monday. The reduction will leave about 40 employees. P-J photo by Eric Tichy

A Jamestown manufacturer announced about half of its workforce will be affected by plant layoffs.

Joseph D. Crews, human resources director for Institutional Casework Inc., confirmed to The Post-Journal on Monday that 37 workers at Jamestown Metal Products will be laid off by May 8. The employees have already been notified of the workforce reduction.

The Tennessee-based Institutional Casework purchased the local manufacturer of painted and stainless steel furniture and equipment for the laboratory, education, government and health care markets in 2009.

The layoffs will leave the plant with about 40 employees.

Crews said the decision was made to ensure Jamestown Metal Products stays at its 178 Blackstone Ave. facility. He said the plant will “refocus” on producing fume hoods and other metal products.

“We are trying to look at the products we make at that plant to make sure they are profitable,” Crews said. “We felt this was the best thing to do to stay profitable. … We hated to do it.”

A notice was filed last week with the state Labor Department announcing the layoffs. The filing, called a WARN notice, is required under federal law when an employer plans to cut at least 25 full-time workers.

Jamestown Metal was founded in 1943.

See Tuesday’s edition of The Post-Journal for more coverage.