Signal International has laid off 200 to 250 employees in its Pascagoula shipyards over the past month as work winds down as rigs are completed.

Chairman and CEO Dick Marler says as the rigs are completed, Signal lays people off. He says Signal had seven rigs but now has only three.

Marler says the cut positions were mostly for craftsmen, he said, including welders, fitters and electricians. About 20 salaried support staff workers were also laid off, he said, while others were transferred to other positions.

The workers know the nature of the work, Marler says, and they hopefully be recalled at the beginning of next year.

Signal International has two Pascagoula shipyards that employed more than 2,500 people before the layoffs.