Wells Fargo lays off 130 in Baton Rouge

Wells Fargo has laid off about 130 local employees who were processing mortgage applications. Jason Menke, a spokesman for Wells Fargo, says the majority of the people affected by the staffing reduction were hired in the past several months to work through a backlog of mortgage applications. The record-low interest rates led to an uptick in refinancing, and Menke says Wells Fargo boosted its hiring to handle the temporary demand. The local employees were working in Perkins Rowe. Last year Wells Fargo shut down a call center in Perkins Rowe, a move that put about 70 people out of work. —Timothy Boone