Advance Auto Parts confirmed Monday that the Roanoke-based company has laid off 19 full-time hourly employees at its distribution center at the Centre for Industry and Technology.

Employees learned about the layoffs Sunday and Monday, according to Shelly Whitaker, a spokeswoman for the publicly traded company.

Whitaker said that Advance employs about 1,500 people in the Roanoke Valley, with about 450 of those working at the distribution center.

The company described the layoffs as temporary and said the cuts were based on seniority, which also will guide the calls to return to work. Advance said it anticipates the workers will be called back in 90 days.

Those who are not rehired will be offered severance packages, the company said.

Advance said temporary layoffs are used occasionally to "adjust staffing levels to fit the needs of the business." The company did not respond directly when asked whether the national economic crisis played a role in the job cuts.

Hundreds of layoffs have occurred in recent months in the Roanoke and New River valleys. Most have been attributed to the nation's economic woes or, for automobile industry suppliers, that sector's struggles.

Last week, during a job fair in Roanoke, long lines of applicants waited to talk to a representative of Advance. Job seekers included people wearing crisp business suits and others clad in blue jeans.

"At the job fair, we were recruiting for corporate openings primarily," Whitaker said.

Advance Auto is a retailer of parts, accessories, batteries and other products for do-it-yourselfers and professional installers. Its stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange as AAP.

As of October, the company operated 3,352 stores in 40 states, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.

On the Net: www.advanceautoparts.com