KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A series of layoffs is under way at Gateway Computers' call center in Kansas City, KMBC's Krista Klaus reported.

Up to 50 employees learned on Thursday that they lost their jobs -- and the layoffs aren't over yet.

A memo sent to dozens of local Gateway employees promised "mass layoffs" at the company's Kansas City call center by the end of the year. About 500 people work at the site.

Former Gateway technician David Schroeder lost his job last month after the company merged with California-based eMachines.

"I hope to grow from it, learn a lot more about business and make a run for it myself," Schroeder said. "I had in the back of my head that the majority of Gateway things would be gone, and they'd be outsourced to somebody else."

But other employees said the layoffs Thursday came as a surprise.

A Gateway spokesman confirmed the company is in the process of laying off 1,500 employees by the end of the year, Klaus reported. The spokesman said the layoffs will take place in small increments of 20 to 50 employees at a time, and he had no way of estimating how many Kansas City jobs will be lost.