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Ohio employers filed five WARN notices with the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services in August, covering 868 workers. The notices included planned closures and job cuts in Cincinnati, Hamilton, West Chester, Upper Sandusky and Walbridge. The largest filing involved 488 workers at SDH Services West in Cincinnati, while 80 Acres Farms reported 145 affected workers at its Hamilton facility.
The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services received five Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) notices in August.
It covers a combined 868 workers, according to a review of state filing data.
The notices involved employers in Cincinnati, Hamilton, West Chester, Upper Sandusky and Walbridge.
The filings show that most of the affected positions involve facility closures rather than traditional workforce reductions. The notices also set different timelines for when the job losses will take effect.
The five August filings were:
- SDH Services West LLC: 488 workers in Cincinnati
- 80 Acres Urban Agriculture Inc.: 145 workers in Hamilton
- Sodexo CTM LLC: 66 workers in West Chester
- Insteel Wire Products Co.: 65 workers in Upper Sandusky
- Cornerstone Building Brands: 104 workers in Walbridge
The combined total is 868 workers. The figures are consistent with WARN notice data compiled from Ohio filings and with a Sept. 9 report by the USA TODAY Network, which described the August notices as affecting more than 850 Ohio workers.
| Employer | Location | Workers Affected | WARN Filing Date | Scheduled Effective Date | Context / Operational Status |
| SDH Services West LLC | Cincinnati, OH | 488 | Aug 4 | Oct 1 | Operating as Sodexo (contract service at UC Medical Center). |
| 80 Acres Urban Agriculture Inc. | Hamilton, OH | 145 | Aug 3 | Aug 17 | Operations shut down Aug 3 following failed acquisition; Chapter 7 bankruptcy filed Aug 25. |
| Cornerstone Building Brands | Walbridge, OH | 104 | Aug 27 | Dec 1 – Dec 31 | Facility closure citing market condition shifts. |
| Sodexo CTM LLC | West Chester, OH | 66 | Aug 6 | Oct 1 | Facility closure. |
| Insteel Wire Products Co. | Upper Sandusky, OH | 65 | Aug 21 | Late October | Plant closure with production absorbed by remaining facilities; ~$4.6M restructuring charge. |
Ohio layoffs include major Cincinnati-area closure
Ohio layoffs in August included the largest filing in the Cincinnati area, where SDH Services West reported a closure affecting 488 workers.
The company filed its WARN notice with Ohio JFS on Aug. 4. The filing lists Oct. 1 as the effective date for the closure, according to WARN records.
SDH Services West is associated with Sodexo. A National Labor Relations Board record identifies SDH Services West as doing business as Sodexo, while a report from a law firm investigating the situation identified the affected operation as Sodexo at UC Medical Center in Cincinnati.
The 488-worker notice represents more than half of the 868 positions covered by the five August filings. It also stands out among Cincinnati WARN notices this year.
WARN tracking data shows Cincinnati had six filings affecting 930 workers over the previous 24 months, with the SDH Services West filing accounting for 488 of those positions.
Ohio layoffs hit 80 Acres Farms after failed deal
Ohio layoffs also affected 80 Acres Farms, the Hamilton-based vertical farming company that permanently shut down its operation in early August.
The company filed a WARN notice Aug. 3 covering 145 workers at its Hamilton facility. The notice said the affected layoffs were expected to be completed by Aug. 17.
80 Acres Farms shut down the Hamilton operation on Aug. 3 after a prospective acquisition fell through. According to the WARN notice, the company had been negotiating a potential acquisition that it expected would provide funding to continue operations, but the prospective buyer withdrew from the deal on Aug. 2.
The company later filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy on Aug. 25 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. BankruptcyData reported that 80 Acres Urban Agriculture Inc., doing business as 80 Acres Farms, and 11 affiliates filed the cases after facility closures and employee layoffs.
The Cincinnati Business Courier also reported Aug. 26 that the former Cincinnati startup had filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, roughly three weeks after its abrupt closure.
The distinction is important. The 145 Ohio layoffs were announced through the Aug. 3 WARN filing, while the Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing came later on Aug. 25.
80 Acres began in Cincinnati’s Spring Grove Village in 2015 and later moved its operations to Hamilton. Village Press reported that the company had operated farms in several states and had raised more than $350 million during its history.
The company also had a broader workforce impact beyond Ohio. WARN records show additional 80 Acres notices involving facilities in other states.
Ohio layoffs extend beyond Greater Cincinnati
The remaining August filings involved employers elsewhere in Ohio.
Sodexo CTM LLC filed a WARN notice Aug. 6 covering 66 workers in West Chester, Butler County. The closure has an Oct. 1 effective date, according to Ohio WARN records.
Insteel Wire Products filed its notice Aug. 21 for 65 workers at its Upper Sandusky facility. The company separately announced that it would close the plant and move manufacturing work to its remaining welded-wire reinforcement facilities.
Insteel said the Upper Sandusky operation is expected to cease by the end of October. The company estimated that the closure would generate about $4.6 million in restructuring charges, including employee separation costs and expenses related to moving equipment.
The company’s announcement said the consolidation should not affect revenue because its remaining facilities have capacity to absorb the production. The company expects to eliminate up to 65 positions as part of the closure.
Cornerstone Building Brands filed the fifth August notice on Aug. 27. The company plans to close its facility in Walbridge, affecting 104 employees.
According to HBSDealer, the Walbridge facility is scheduled to wind down between Dec. 1 and Dec. 31. Cornerstone cited changing market and business conditions and said it had evaluated alternatives before determining that the closure could not be avoided.
The Ohio Revised Code’s WARN provisions require covered employers to comply with federal WARN requirements. Ohio law also directs employers to provide notice to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services and certain local officials when covered plant closures or mass layoffs occur.
Ohio layoffs follow larger July job cuts
The August notices came after an even larger group of Ohio WARN filings in July.
A major July notice involved International Motors LLC in Springfield, where 1,341 workers were listed for layoffs. Other July filings included closures involving Down-Lite International in Mason and Bridgeway Pointe in Cincinnati.
The August filings therefore add to a series of large employment changes across the state. However, WARN notices do not necessarily mean every affected worker has already lost a job.
Some August notices set future effective dates. For example, the SDH Services West and Sodexo CTM closures are scheduled for Oct. 1, while Insteel’s Upper Sandusky closure is expected to take effect in October. Cornerstone’s Walbridge closure is scheduled to begin in December.
That distinction matters when interpreting monthly WARN totals. A notice identifies a planned mass layoff or closure and the number of potentially affected workers; the actual employment separation can occur later.
The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services maintains the state’s WARN process and provides Rapid Response services for affected workers. Its WARN submission materials say those services can include unemployment benefit information, re-employment assistance and training support.
For Cincinnati readers, the SDH Services West closure represents the largest single August WARN filing directly tied to the city. The 80 Acres Farms shutdown also has a strong regional connection because the company was founded in Cincinnati before moving its farming operations to Hamilton.
Together, the two notices account for 633 of the 868 jobs covered by the five August Ohio filings.
The latest filings show that the employment impact is spread across multiple industries, including food services, indoor agriculture and manufacturing. The notices also show that some of the largest job losses involve closures rather than conventional layoffs.
FAQs
What are WARN notices?
WARN notices are filings related to covered mass layoffs and plant or facility closures under the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act. They generally provide advance notice of planned employment losses.
How many Ohio workers were affected by the August WARN filings?
The five August filings covered a combined 868 workers. The notices involved employers in Cincinnati, Hamilton, West Chester, Upper Sandusky and Walbridge.
Which August filing affected the most workers?
SDH Services West reported a closure affecting 488 workers in Cincinnati. The filing listed Oct. 1 as the effective date for the closure.
What happened to 80 Acres Farms?
80 Acres Farms shut down its Hamilton operation after a prospective acquisition fell through. It later filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy on Aug. 25, while its Aug. 3 WARN notice covered 145 Hamilton workers.
