Georgia-Pacific has announced it will lay off 300 workers and shut down its plywood mill in Peterman in mid-January.

A spokeswoman for the Atlanta-based company blamed the closure on a sluggish economy and a downturn in the housing industry.

The company said displaced workers will not be offered severance packages because they expect to restart the mill in the future.

Economic development officials are planning to hold job fairs to keep skilled employees in the area.

Georgia-Pacific’s paper mills in Brewton and Pennington will not be affected.

Peterman is located in Monroe County.