[link to iowacity.patch.com]

Rockwell Collins, the defense contractor and largest employer in the Cedar Rapids metro area, may layoff 1,000 employees.

Clay Jones, Rockwell's CEO, told workers that the staff reductions may be eased by the success of two factors, according to the Gazette.

If Congress fails to pass debt reduction policies, which will automatically trigger large cuts, including budget reductions to defense.

If an unspecified commercial product from the company "wins," according to Jones, the financial gains there may offset any losses due to federal defense spending cuts.
Rockwell Collins employs 8,700 workers in their Cedar Rapids campus and 692 in Coralville. That accounts for approximately half of the company's global workforce.

It's not yet known how the potential cuts could effect workers in the Cedar Rapids campus.