About 200 full-time security screeners at Pearson International Airport were given layoff notices after their employer said it would be cutting back hours, months after several part-time workers were hired.

The Canadian Air Transport Security Authority said last week it would be reducing hours for the screeners at several airports across the country.

On Wednesday, 190 full-time employees were handed pink slips.

Garda, the company that runs screening operations at Pearson for CATSA, confirmed the layoffs Wednesday night.

In a statement, the company said its staffing levels are "adjusted continually as conditions change" and that "for security reasons, we cannot disclose more specific staffing information."

The federal government changed its air security policy in February, relaxing restrictions for carry-on luggage introduced after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

CATSA also said new, modernized screening equipment was a factor in the cuts.

But back in January 2010, Garda announced it would be hiring 400 additional airport screening officers to "meet the increased requirement in Toronto" and other cities.

The company also held a job fair in Toronto this past February, prompting hundreds of people to line up in the cold for a shot at up to 300 part-time jobs.