Rosetta Stone has not released how many workers they are letting go.

Rosetta Stone is in Downtown Harrisonburg and that means many Rosetta Stone workers go to local businesses every day.

With some of them laid off, it could be bad news for the downtown area.

Frank Tamberrino is the president of the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Chamber of Commerce and he said there is no way to predict the economic impact just yet.

"Part of the economic impact really depends on the magnitude," said Tamberrino.

The magnitude of layoffs from Rosetta Stone has not been announced. Either way, with some workers leaving, Tamberrino says less money will be spent downtown.

That will create a negative impact for the local economy.

"From the community standpoint, they were very vibrant in terms of being very active in the community. Shopping locally, you know walking to work, biking to work, very conscious of the environment," said Tamberrino.

Stephen Swad, the CEO of Rosetta Stone issued this statement:

To align with our global growth plan and to provide streamlined efficiencies within our workforce, select members of the Rosetta Stone team will no longer be working with the company.

The company is making cuts at various locations.

Tamberrino said he hopes there are not too many layoffs in Harrisonburg because he said Rosetta Stone has become one of the biggest employers since it was founded here.

"Definitely a jewel, if you will, for Harrisonburg to have Rosetta Stone grow up here and still be here in significant numbers," said Tamberrino.

Tamberrino said even though there will be layoffs locally, he hopes the company will find ways to rehire the same amount of people eventually as they evolve as a business.

Rosetta Stone said all employees laid off already know about these changes.

We will keep you updated when we find out exactly how many layoffs there will be.

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