A furniture manufacturer is cutting hundreds of jobs in Southern California as it shifts production to plants in North Carolina, Mississippi and Wisconsin.

The San Bernardino County Sun reported Saturday that about 840 workers at an Ashley Furniture HomeStore factory and warehouse in Colton were laid off Friday.

The company says the majority of production at the site east of Los Angeles is going to other U.S. plants to create more efficiency.

It says closing the Colton plants Oct. 25 will help keep the company competitive.

Employees told the newspaper they were notified at a brief meeting that their jobs were being eliminated.

The company said it gave employees 60 days' notice and complied with federal regulations governing layoffs.

A retail store is to remain open.

(Source: latimes.com  By Associated Press)