According to the state, about seven percent of Vermont workers are employed by manufacturing companies, but the sector is shrinking fast. The number of manufacturing jobs from pre-pandemic 2020 to 2026 has fallen by more than 11 percent.
A year ago, the infant formula company Perrigo announced it would be closing its factory in Georgia, Franklin County. This month, it kicked off that process, laying off 162 people. By the end of June, all manufacturing at the plant will have ceased and more than four hundred will be laid off.
We’ll work to understand why the plant is closing with Vermont Business Magazine’s Tim McQuiston and Megan Sullivan of the Vermont Chamber of Commerce. We also heard from Zev Wertz, owner of Georgia Market near the Perrigo plant, on how the the layoffs will impact his business's future.
Today's show also included a conversation with Shayla Livingston, interim deputy commissioner for the Vermont Department of Health, on how overdose deaths decreased for the third year in a row.
Broadcast live on Monday, May 11, 2026, at noon; rebroadcast at 7 p.m.
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