NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Tennessee is shutting down a rapid response team that has been sent to aid workers in mass layoffs.

According to The Tennessean, elimination of the unit comes over the objection of some members of a state workforce advisory board.

The team has helped when at least 50 people have been thrown out of work by an employer's decision. The workers could be those subject to recall or those who were terminated. The unit has been in operation for about a decade. It provided quick assistance to people whose jobs suddenly ended.

A spokesman for the Department of Labor and Workforce Development said some of the seven members of the team have been given layoff notices and the others will be told shortly.