Jun 09, 2009. /Lesprom Network/. Smurfit-Stone Container Corp. laid off 12 employees May 1 at its corrugating container plant in Tennessee, the Knoxville News Sentinel reported on June 8. Previously, the Chicago-based company laid off 11 people at the Knox County plant on Feb. 28. The recession continues to hit hard for some as more residents of East Tennessee are laid off, according to a report by the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development, the Knoxville News-Sentinel reported on June 8. Home improvement hardware supplier Orgill Inc., based in Memphis, Tennessee, told the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development that it will lay off 176 people at its distribution center in Knoxville by the end of August.