Area gas station staffing group to shut

A Bay Area gas station staffing company is shutting down and laying off 337 workers, according to state filings.

Walnut Creek-based Aura Management Co. said in a state filing this month that its contract with gas company BP was terminated, forcing Aura to “terminate all its active employees and cease operations” by June 26.

Aura did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but said in the filings that its “understanding is that BP will continue to operate the sites with the help of Thorntons, LLC.”

The layoffs span the Bay Area, encompassing 11 in Walnut Creek, including company CEO Bejan Farahbakhsh; 29 in Oakley, in two locations; 28 in San Jose, in two locations; 26 in Vacaville, across two locations; 20 in Concord; 20 in Millbrae; 19 in Morgan Hill; 17 in Richmond; 17 in Vallejo; 16 in Pittsburg; 16 in Antioch; 13 in San Leandro; 13 in Milpitas; 13 in Oakland; 13 in Bay Point; 12 in Dublin, 12 in Santa Rosa; 11 in Fremont; and six in Sunnyvale. Just outside the Bay Area, 11 are being laid off in Aptos (Santa Cruz County) and 14 in King City (Monterey County).

Affected employees include cashiers, cooks and managers.

The closure comes amid heightened layoffs in the Bay Area. Tesla said this month that it would lay off 2,753 workers in Fremont and Palo Alto.

California’s unemployment rate was 5.3% in March, up from 4.5% in March 2023, and the highest in the nation among states.