The temporary layoffs at the Holcim cement plant in Catskill will continue until the end of February, a company official said Monday.

 The layoffs, which were announced in November and effective until Monday, are being extended until February 28, according to Holcim’s Vice President of Corporate Communications Robin DeCarlo.



“We continue to face challenging market conditions,” DeCarlo said.



In an email last November, Plant Manager Deon van den Berg said “slow market conditions, the normal seasonal slowdown in construction and escalating costs” was the reason for the layoffs.

The cutback has affected 62 hourly workers and eight others currently on short-term disability or workers compensation.



The extension of the layoffs is a sign Holcim continues to struggle financially amid a stubbornly slow economic recovery. “We continue to monitor the situation,” DeCarlo said.