Job Cuts annoucements

[James48843]

This is a thread to collect storys of CONFIRMED job cuts. Not just "might have to cut...",. but real cuts announced. I'll start.


You can post just the headline and a key paragraph or two- to show the number of jobs cut.

If it is a long story, just post the key data, and then be sure to include a link to the whole story.

thanks

[James48843]

AT&T to cut 12,000 jobs, 4 percent of staff

By BARBARA ORTUTAY, AP Technology Writer Barbara Ortutay, Ap Technology Writer

NEW YORK – AT&T Inc. joined the recession's parade of layoffs Thursday by announcing plans to cut 12,000 jobs, about 4 percent of its work force.

The Dallas-based telecommunications company — the nation's largest — said the job cuts will take place in December and throughout 2009. The company also plans to reduce capital spending next year.

Spokesman Walt Sharp said the layoffs will be "across the company and across the country," but would not specify what departments and cities would be most affected. These layoffs come on top of 4,600 jobs the company said in April it would eliminate.

The new cuts come as AT&T finds itself pulled by two currents at once. Not only is the recession leading businesses and consumers to curtail spending, but a long-term trend in the telecom industry is also at play: AT&T, which provides local phone coverage in California, Texas and 20 other states, has been seeing many customers defect from landline phones to wireless services. In the last quarter, AT&T basic voice lines in service dropped 11 percent.
Reflecting that shift, the company noted Thursday that even as it slashes some jobs, it would still be hiring in 2009 in parts of the business that offer cell phone service and broadband Internet access. AT&T, whose shares are down about 30 percent this year — while the Dow Jones industrial average is off 35 percent — remains profitable, and benefits from being the sole U.S. wireless carrier for Apple Inc.'s popular iPhone.
AT&T plans to take a charge of about $600 million in the fourth quarter to pay for severance costs. The company noted that many of its non-management employees have guaranteed jobs because of union contracts. All affected workers will receive severance "in accordance with management policies or union agreements," the company said.
Its shares were down 2.5 percent in pre-market trading, at $28.35.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081204/ap_on_bi_ge/at_t_jobs/print;_ylt=AuWtBvn3SwAmAIJddqHHaSVv24cA

[CountryBoy]

Viacom to cut 850 jobs, freeze some raises in 2009
By The Associated Press | 04 Dec 2008 | 09:38 AM ET Text Size NEW YORK -

The media conglomerate Viacom Inc. said Thursday that it will slash about 850 jobs and freeze some senior-level raises in a move to weather the global economic downturn.

The owner of MTV Networks, BET Networks and Paramount Pictures said the job cuts will affect about 7 percent of its work force and hit all departments.

The job cuts and suspension of some raises for senior-level executives in 2009 is expected to generate pretax savings of $200 million to $250 million next year.

Source: http://www.cnbc.com/id/28051107

[CountryBoy]

Pratt & Whitney lays off 350 employees
Wednesday December 3, 6:52 pm ET
By Donna Borak, AP Business Writer

Jet engine maker Pratt & Whitney lays off 350 on concerns about airline orders.

Jet engine maker Pratt & Whitney laid off about 350 employees across the country on Wednesday amid concerns that airlines may delay or cancel orders as the global economy slows.

Source: http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/081203/pratt_whitney_layoffs.html?.v=11

[CountryBoy]

DuPont warns of quarterly loss, to cut 2,500 jobs
Reuters


The chemical maker said the 2,500 job cuts, which represent about 4.2 percent of its workforce, will occur in businesses that service the automobile and construction markets in Western Europe and the United States.

DuPont is also cutting the jobs of 4,000 contractors by year-end 2008 with additional contractor reductions in 2009.

Source: http://biz.yahoo.com/rb/081204/business_us_dupont.html

[Show-me]

JWT INSIDE
Layoff Report



November 21, 2008
Number of Entries: 111


AEROSPACE AND DEFENSE


BAE Systems
London, England
Norfolk, VA

BAE Systems, the global defense company that runs the largest private shipyard in South Hampton Roads, said Thursday it will cut 40 positions as it shutters its maritime engineering and service division. BAE plans to cut 134 positions of the 200 people employed in that division nationwide by the end of the year, said Stephanie Moncada, a local BAE spokeswoman. The division specializes in corrosion control and performed blasting and paint work on vessels, she said. "After much consideration, the business was not viable and we decided to close that portion of the business and focus on ship repair," Moncada said. Employees to be cut in Norfolk will be given the opportunity to apply for jobs within the ship repair division, she said, and the company expects to absorb a majority of those who are to be laid off. The company will cut 134 positions nationwide this year, 40 of them locally. It employs about 1,200 at its Norfolk shipyard.

Approximate Affected Workforce: 1-50
Source: The Virginian-Pilot - November 14, 2008



AEROSPACE AND DEFENSE


The Boeing Company
Chicago, IL
Wichita, KS

Boeing Co.'s defense unit plans to cut 800 jobs, or about 27 percent of the workforce, at its plant in Wichita, Kan., because of the delay of an Air Force tanker replacement program and the end of other work projects. The Chicago-based company, which makes military aircraft, civilian jetliners and surveillance systems, said Wednesday that the reduction at the Integrated Defense Systems facility will affect managers as well as salaried and hourly workers. The Wichita operation, a defense facility that provides limited support for Boeing's commercial aircraft business, employs about 3,000 people. Work at the facility includes modifying Boeing aircraft for international customers. Among its programs are executive aircraft, 767 international tankers and refueling systems support for B-52s. Sixty-day layoff notices will be delivered Friday to about 76 employees, Boeing said. Their last day of work is scheduled for mid-January. The rest of the layoffs will continue throughout 2009, with most occurring in the first half of the year, Boeing said.

Approximate Affected Workforce: 501-1000
Source: Chicago Tribune - November 20, 2008



APPAREL


Allen Edmonds Shoe Corporation
Port Washington, WI

Allen-Edmonds Shoe Corp. has eliminated 40 jobs, or 8% of its workforce, mostly in shoe manufacturing at the Port Washington plant. Chief Executive Officer Paul Grangaard said the job cuts were the result of reduced sales of shoes in this economy. "It's significant," Grangaard said of the sales slump. "There's also a fashion trend that's been working against us." Demand for leather-bottom shoes, which make up most of the company's styles, has declined as men turn more to rubber-bottom footwear. Allen-Edmonds will introduce a new line of rubber-bottom shoes this winter, made at its plant in Lewiston, Maine. Next fall, the company plans to roll out another new line of shoes with rubber bottoms that are sewn on rather than glued. These shoes will be made in Port Washington, where Allen-Edmonds makes sewn bottoms, Grangaard said. The Port Washington plant will have about 300 workers after the layoff; total company employment will be 460, Grangaard said.

Approximate Affected Workforce: 1-50
Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - November 14, 2008



APPAREL


Hanesbrands Inc
Winston-Salem, NC

A North Carolina textile company says it is laying off white collar workers in its home city as part of a cutback that includes closing a yarn plant elsewhere in the state. Hanesbrands Inc. announced Tuesday cuts of 210 corporate and management jobs across the company, including 155 positions in Winston-Salem. Hanesbrands said half of the cuts are in purchasing, production planning and development and quality control. The other half are in customer management, finance, human resources, information technology and marketing.

Approximate Affected Workforce: 101-500
Source: The Associated Press - November 19, 2008



AUTOMOTIVE


Automobile Club of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA
Elk Grove, CA

California State Automobile Association's Elk Grove office is laying off 34 people effective this week and another 70 people on Dec. 31, a spokeswoman confirmed. The layoffs come a little early as the automobile club prepares for a previously announced shuttering of its Elk Grove call center. The automobile club is moving jobs from Elk Grove and two other centers in California to other states to save money. "This has been a gradual ramping down of employees," spokeswoman Cynthia Harris said. Workers receive severance, job-search training, such as help writing resumes, and time off to go on job interviews. Some may transfer to other jobs within the organization.

Approximate Affected Workforce: 101-500
Source: Sacramento Business Journal - November 17, 2008



AUTOMOTIVE


Kenworth Truck Company
Bellevue, WA
Renton, WA

Kenworth Truck Co. plans to lay off more than 400 workers and end most truck production at its Renton plant as a two-year slump in truck sales moves into a third. Don Hursey, directing business representative for Machinists District Lodge 160, said he was told by Kenworth officials that 329 union and 92 management employees will be laid off. In a filing with the state Employment Security Department on Friday, Kenworth put the number of layoffs at 430. The layoffs and production cuts are effective Jan. 19. A Kenworth spokesman confirmed that the Renton plant is curtailing production and laying off workers, but did not give numbers. The plant will continue to produce daily two of the large off-road trucks used in such industries as mining and oil-field development, Hursey said. But production of conventional Class 8 heavy-duty highway trucks will be shifted to Kenworth's plant in Chillicothe, Ohio.

Approximate Affected Workforce: 101-500
Source: The Seattle Post-Intelligencer - November 15, 2008



BUSINESS SERVICES


Continental Promotion Group Inc
Tampa, FL

Just a day after it handed out pink slips to 17 employees, CPG Marketing Inc. and Continental Promotion Group Inc. of Tampa have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Friday. The companies both list an Eisenhower Boulevard office as their address, and both have Daniel Granger as its chief executive. Continental Promotion lists assets of between $1 million and $10 million, and liabilities in the same range from between 200 and 999 creditors. CPG Marketing listed estimated assets of $1 million to $10 million, and liabilities of between $10 million and $50 million, with up to 50 creditors. Continental Promotion told Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation Thursday it would lay off 17 people by Nov. 19. It's unclear how many employees Continental and CPG had, and a call to the company's media contact, Amy Harich, was pending return Friday. Continental Promotion touts itself on its Web site as a promotional management services provider, interacting with more than 30 million consumers annually through manufacturer- and retailer-driven promotions, according to press releases from the company.

Approximate Affected Workforce: 1-50
Source: The Business Journal - November 14, 2008



BUSINESS SERVICES


IBM Corporation
Armonk, NY
Rochester, MN

For the second time in about two weeks, IBM job cuts have hit Rochester. "We did have a resource action involving 12 people in Rochester on Nov. 12," IBM spokesman John Buscemi confirmed on Friday. He declined to give any specific detail about what jobs and employees were affected. "We don't mention departments or positions, because we consider that competitive information," he said. Buscemi did say that the 12 employees have 30 days to try to find another job within IBM. If they don't find one, they will be eligible for severance pay based on years of service. This round of cuts in Rochester follows an IBM layoff of 10 people on Oct. 31.

Approximate Affected Workforce: 1-50
Source: Post-Bulletin - November 14, 2008



BUSINESS SERVICES


Lawson Software Inc
St Paul, MN

Lawson Software Inc. said Tuesday it will cut 200 workers, including about 45 in Minnesota, in order to trim costs. The St. Paul business-software firm said the bulk of the layoffs will wrap up by the end of the year. A little under half of the employees affected are based in the United States, a company spokesman said. Lawson (Nasdaq: LWSN) also plans to limit hiring and take other steps to reduce costs. Overall, the company expects to reduce its workforce by between eight and 10 percent by the end of its 2009 fiscal year. The company has about 3,600 employees. The restructuring is expected to save Lawson between $40 million and $50 million, the company said in a press statement.

Approximate Affected Workforce: 101-500
Source: The Business Journal - November 18, 2008



DISTRIBUTION/WAREHOUSE


Finning International Inc
Vancouver, BC
Edmonton, AB

Heavy-equipment distributor Finning has cut its workforce, including 39 positions in Western Canada. "The world is a different place than it was a month, two months ago," said Tom Merinsky, vice-president of investor relations for Vancouver-based Finning International Inc. Workers were laid off in Argentina, Britain and in Western Canada, eliminating 29 jobs at the company's 30 Cat Rental Stores in Alberta, B.C. and the Northwest Territories.

Approximate Affected Workforce: 1-50
Source: Edmonton, AB - November 20, 20

[Show-me]

There are many more, the link is here.

http://www.jwtinside.com/hrlive/layoffs.php

[tsptalk]

November:

-533,000 jobs
6.7% unemployment

October revised from -240K to -320K

[Show-me]

Wow! Way worse than they expected and 80,000 more jobs lost in last months revision.

[Gumby]

Wow! Way worse than they expected and 80,000 more jobs lost in last months revision.

Will the S&P hit a new low today or beak through 900? Will the market shrug off the news?
I am thinking the S&P may dip below 800 briefly.:blink:

[Show-me]

Market is taking it in stride right now, but wait until the last hour of the day.:worried::sick::blink:

[Frixxxx]

AP

BofA plans up to 35,000 job cuts in next 3 years

Thursday December 11, 7:42 pm ET
By Madlen Read, AP Business Writer Bank of America expects to cut up to 35,000 jobs in next 3 years as it absorbs Merrill

NEW YORK (AP) -- Bank of America Corp. said Thursday it expects to cut 30,000 to 35,000 jobs over the next three years, as it faces a deteriorating economic environment and tries to absorb Merrill Lynch & Co.
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/081211/bank_of_america_merrill_layoffs.html

[Frixxxx]

Sara Lee Layoffs Job Cut: fires 700 employees, outsources work (http://invest-n-trade.blogspot.com/2008/12/sara-lee-layoffs-job-cut-fires-700.html)

http://invest-n-trade.blogspot.com/2008/12/sara-lee-layoffs-job-cut-fires-700.html

[Frixxxx]

Stanley Works Layoffs Job Cut: fires 2000 employees, closes 3 plants (http://invest-n-trade.blogspot.com/2008/12/stanley-works-layoffs-job-cut-fires.html)

http://invest-n-trade.blogspot.com/2008/12/stanley-works-layoffs-job-cut-fires.html

[Frixxxx]

Furniture Brands Layoffs Job Cut: fires 1400 employees (http://invest-n-trade.blogspot.com/2008/12/furniture-brands-layoffs-job-cut-fires.html)
http://invest-n-trade.blogspot.com/2008/12/furniture-brands-layoffs-job-cut-fires.html

[Frixxxx]

Sonus Networks Layoffs Job Cut: fires 50 employees (http://invest-n-trade.blogspot.com/2008/12/sonus-networks-layoffs-job-cut-fires-50.html)

http://invest-n-trade.blogspot.com/2008/12/sonus-networks-layoffs-job-cut-fires-50.html

[Frixxxx]

Barclays Layoffs Job Cut: fires 100 employees at Cardiff (http://invest-n-trade.blogspot.com/2008/12/barclays-layoffs-job-cut-fires-100.html)

http://invest-n-trade.blogspot.com/2008/12/barclays-layoffs-job-cut-fires-100.html:blink:

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By Emily Chasan and Aarthi Sivaraman

NEW YORK/HONG KONG, Dec 11 (Reuters) - KB Toys Inc, one of the largest U.S. toy retailers, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Thursday, with a plan to close all its stores and begin liquidation sales in the middle of the holiday season.

KB Toys is the latest retailer to succumb to a sharp decline in consumer spending this year. Others like apparel retailer Steve & Barry's to jeweler Whitehall Jewelers Holdings (WHJHQ.PK: Quote (http://www.reuters.com/stocks/quote?symbol=WHJHQ.PK), Profile (http://www.reuters.com/stocks/companyProfile?symbol=WHJHQ.PK), Research (http://www.reuters.com/stocks/researchReports?symbol=WHJHQ.PK), Stock Buzz (http://reuters.socialpicks.com/stock/r/WHJHQ)) filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this year and started selling their merchandise at deep discounts.


http://www.reuters.com/article/bondsNews/idUSN1138906920081212

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I hear they will eliminate all jobs, 11,000.



The company operates 277 mall-based stores, 40 KB Toy Works stores which are mainly in strip malls, 114 outlet stores and 30 short-term holiday stores. It has 4,400 full-time employees and 6,515 seasonal employees.

[Silverbird]

:mad:It appears companies are reporting their data late with all of the revisions.

[Frixxxx]

Although the cuts were made last week, I thought that the "Executive Effect" was worth mentioning:

BofA Lays Off About 20 High-ranking Executives: WSJ

http://www.foxbusiness.com/story/markets/industries/finance/bofa-lays--high-ranking-executives-wsj/

[James48843]

Thousands of layoffs by DHL, ABX Air hit Wilmington, Ohio
By David J. Lynch, USA TODAY

WILMINGTON, Ohio — As hard times go, this is about as hard as it gets. The single-biggest employer in these parts is laying off about 7,500 men and women.

In a town of fewer than 13,000 people. In the midst of the worst financial crisis in generations.

"It's going to test us," says Mayor David Raizk. "The numbers are frightening."

Those numbers came in a Nov. 10 announcement by Deutsche Post World Net, the German owner of package-delivery company DHL. After investing five years and nearly $9 billion, DHL is abandoning its ill-starred effort to compete in the United States with FedEx and UPS. Winding down its U.S. business will eliminate 9,500 DHL positions around the country plus thousands more here at the company's local partner, ABX Air.

DHL, which has long struggled in the U.S., said in May that ABX would likely lose business that supported thousands of workers. But the global financial crisis magnified shareholder pressure on DHL's German owner and accelerated the erosion at the No. 3 company in a three-company market, triggering DHL's exodus.

Exposure to bankrupt investment bank Lehman Bros. blew a $450 million hole in third-quarter earnings at the German giant's banking subsidiary, while DHL's customers grew tightfisted amid the spreading economic malaise.

Now, the rise in unemployment happening across the USA is appearing here in concentrated form. One of every three Wilmington households will be hurt by DHL's exit. From pilots to avionics technicians to package handlers, waves of people in several counties are losing their paychecks in a place and at a time when well-paying jobs are as precious as diamonds. And, in rural Ohio, about as easy to find.

The sad truth is there's no way the local economy can sprout paychecks for all who will need them. "I really don't want to (leave) unless I have to," says pilot Bill Kocher, 47. "I was born and raised here. I like the town.

I like the school my daughter's in. I like the church we go to."

It hasn't gone unnoticed here that as times got hard in other industries, people with more money and better connections lined up in Washington, D.C., with their well-manicured hands out. Wilmington received an emergency $3.8 million Labor Department grant to help retrain the newly jobless. But no one here expects Uncle Sam to ride to the rescue.

This community's self-image is one of straightforward, hardworking Midwesterners, the sort of people who continue to produce for the boss even after the boss says he's putting them on the street. Since learning that its contract with DHL would be ending, ABX has delivered 99% of its packages on time, says ABX spokeswoman Beth Huber.

Hardest hit among the affected workers will likely be those in the package-sorting operation, most of whom don't have a college degree. The "sort" jobs pay well, about $16 an hour, and offer good health insurance benefits.

Wilmington native Chris Haidet, 45, went to work at ABX straight out of high school 27 years ago. He remembers the excitement in town when the first McDonald's opened and the thrill of the company's first giant DC-8 cargo jet. "You could walk under the airplane," he says. "People were in awe."

Haidet raised three kids here. A daughter works in Cincinnati. A second cuts hair at the local Wal-Mart. His son has traded dreams of attending graphic-design school for what his dad says is now "the only guaranteed job around": a slot in the U.S. Marine Corps.

Three dozen of Haidet's co-workers got their pink slips on Nov. 20. Maybe two have new jobs lined up. Haidet's wife has children from an earlier marriage and won't leave Wilmington. He hopes to find something in Dayton, Columbus or Cincinnati. But all three cities are about an hour's drive away, quite a change from his four-minute commute.

"Right now, we're not really sure (what we'll do)," Haidet says. "I was going to retire from here."

Success was elusive

Walk along the streets of Wilmington's historic downtown and the storefront names seem lifted from a Frank Capra film. Smith's Barber Shop, First National Bank, A&A Insurance, Granny's Country Cupboard. This is small-town America from an era when most of America was small-town.

"You know that nostalgic picture you have in your mind of what a hometown should be? Well, the way it should be is the way it is in Wilmington," says Molly Dullea, 51, who moved here five years ago to buy the 80-year-old General Denver Hotel.

Dullea says about 30% of her business is from ABX pilots who live outside the area and spend occasional nights at the General Denver. She worries that the venerable hotel, a landmark boasting perhaps the best restaurant in town, may be among the one-in-five local businesses the mayor expects will fail.

First settled in 1810 as a plot of "16 squares of eight lots each," Wilmington isn't much more populous today than it was two centuries ago. The aging neighborhoods at its core contain modest, clapboard homes arrayed on streets named for states, such as Kentucky or New York.

In recent years, new strip malls full of familiar, modern names such as CVS, Staples, McDonald's and Wal-Mart arose on the city's eastern rim. Some folks wonder how long the national chains will linger as the pink slips mount.

The economic heart of the region has long been the Airborne Airpark, the airport business park named for the delivery company that was ABX Air's corporate ancestor. In 2003, DHL acquired Airborne Express as part of its bid to become a global carrier able to challenge FedEx and UPS on their home turf.

U.S. trade rules limiting foreign companies to minority stakes in domestic airlines forced a spinoff of Airborne's airplanes into a new company called ABX. The regulations thus saddled DHL with a less-efficient, higher-cost operation than its rivals.

DHL planned to marry its international prowess with Airborne/ABX's domestic footprint. Success was elusive and made more so by missteps, such as a botched 2005 consolidation of package-handling operations in Cincinnati and Wilmington, which left packages stacked in idle rows and cost DHL 10% of its domestic business.

As the financial losses multiplied, DHL announced in May a major restructuring of its U.S. operations that would shift its domestic air business from ABX to rival UPS. The announcement meant that several thousand ABX workers eventually would be jobless, though it left about 1,000 ABX ground employees hopeful of continued work.

But as negotiations with UPS continued, and the economic picture darkened, DHL opted for a more draconian strategy. On Nov. 10, the company announced it would exit the domestic package-delivery business entirely.

From the end of January, DHL will handle only international shipments into and out of the U.S. "The financial crisis was the final nail in the coffin," says Dave Ross, who heads Teamsters Local 1224, representing ABX's pilots.

Of 550 active pilots, perhaps 50 can expect to find new flying jobs, Ross says. The rest will likely drift into teaching or the military reserves.

Bill Kocher, who rose to Boeing 767 captain after starting 28 years ago as a part-time package sorter, knows there are few jobs for pilots in a small town midway between Columbus and Cincinnati. A handful of his co-workers have caught on with foreign carriers such as Korean Air or Emirates. But neither moving to Dubai nor being away from home for weeks at a stretch appeals to him. So he's getting ready to ratchet down his standard of living, one notch at a time.

Kocher wouldn't disclose his salary. But annual base pay for ABX captains is $186,000, and some make upwards of $200,000 or even $300,000. If he's lucky enough to secure a job with one of the rare airlines that are hiring, such as Virgin America or Southwest, he'd make just $30,000 during a one-year probationary period.

The road ahead

Such individual dramas are becoming common in communities like Wilmington. This corner of southwestern Ohio has been slipping behind for years, reflecting the erosion of American manufacturing and its relatively high-wage blue-collar jobs.

In 1970, per-capita personal income in Clinton County was about 10% below the national average. It fell further back in the late 1980s, then crept closer to the national average during the late-1990s boom. Since then, local prospects have declined. County residents now earn about 20% less than people elsewhere.

Some say Joe Hete, CEO of ABX Air's corporate parent, blew it when he rebuffed a DHL-supported takeover bid from another air carrier called Astar. A merger would have given DHL the single air partner and lower costs it coveted. Hete says Astar never made a formal offer. But its "indication of interest" valued ABX at $7.75 a share; shares of the parent company, Air Transport Services Group (ATSG) (http://stocks.usatoday.com/custom/usatoday-com/html-quote.asp?symb=atsg), closed Monday at 24 cents apiece.


The Chamber of Commerce is planning a benefit concert for mid-January. Karen Haley, the chamber president, talks hopefully of converting the airpark to alternative energy production.

Volunteers at a local Methodist church counsel workers on retraining options or scarce job leads. And Mayor Raizk says he's confident that in five years Wilmington will be back to where it was, just as good as ever. Left unsaid is how people will get from today to five years from today.

"I don't think it's going to be a ghost town like some people say. … It's going to be all right," says Kocher. "It's just not going to be the same."

http://images.clickability.com/pti/spacer.gif
http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/2008-12-15-wilmington-dhl-abx-air-layoffs_N.htm

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Western Digital to Cut 2500 Jobs, Halt Production (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=a30Y3Yin.D_M&refer=us)

Newell Rubbermaid Lowers Profit Forecast, Cuts Jobs (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aSJ8llHGUe.A&refer=us)

Cooper Tire To Close Georgia Plant, Affecting 1400 (http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/djf500/200812171020DOWJONESDJONLINE000684_FORTUNE5.htm)

Motorola to freeze salaries, pensions (http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/motorola-freeze-salaries-pensions-cost-cutting/story.aspx?guid=%7BE327B691-27CB-44DE-A95C-32F4FFD206CE%7D&dist=msr_1)

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This Week’s Grim Layoff Report

Looking at the long list of companies eliminating jobs, it might be simpler to report those that are not reducing head count.
Stephen Taub (http://www.cfo.com/index.cfm/l_emailauthor/12792307/c_2984355/2984986), CFO.com | US
December 12, 2008

The job picture was not pretty once again this week. Things were ugliest of all at Bank of America, which late Thursday announced plans to cut up to 35,000 jobs in the next three years. The bank cited its pending merger with Merrill Lynch and the weak economic environment as reasons for the decision. The reductions will come from both companies and affect all lines of business and staff units.

The Bank of America move brings the total number of announced job cuts in the financial sector this year to 220,506, according to outplacement consultancy Challenger, Gray & Christmas. “We probably have not seen the end of major job cuts in the financial sector,” says John Challenger, the firm’s CEO.

Earlier in the week, BlackRock Inc., the largest publicly traded U.S. asset manager, cut 500 jobs worldwide, according to Reuters. And Principal Financial dropped 550 jobs, about 3.5 percent of its workforce, Reuters reported.

The week’s job losses again affected companies in a wide range of industries.

Fairchild Semiconductor said Friday that it plans to eliminate 1,100 jobs, or about 12 percent of its workforce.

Gildan Activewear, a Canadian apparel maker, said Thursday it will phase out its U.S. sock-finishing operations by the end of June and consolidate operations in Honduras in order to remain globally competitive in the current economic conditions. However, it did not specify how many workers would lose their job. The Associated Press reported the company is eliminating 220 jobs in Fort Payne, Alabama — known as the "Sock Capital of the World" — and closing a Virginia knitting plant with 180 employees.

Office Depot said it will close about 9 percent of its North American stores and cut 2,200 jobs in the next three months.

Furniture Brands International, a retailer as well as a manufacturer of furniture, will delete 1,400 jobs, or 15 percent of its U.S. workforce.
Stanley Works, a maker of tools, said it will eliminate about 2,000 positions, or 10 percent of its employees, close three manufacturing facilities, and eliminate some layers of management.

To further underscore the cross-section of companies shrinking their payroll, Praxair Inc., the largest producer of industrial gases in the Americas, said it will cut 1,600 jobs because the recession is causing an “unprecedented” drop in demand.

Elsewhere, Tyco Electronics Ltd., the world’s largest maker of electronic connectors, said it will cut about 2,500 jobs worldwide.

Specialty chemicals maker Chemtura Corp. said it is reducing its professional and administrative staff by 500 people, or about 20 percent of the professional and administrative population, citing the change in economic conditions.

On Tuesday Navistar International, a truck and engine maker, told 250 salaried workers they will lose their job, a spokesman told Reuters.

Even government-financed entities have not been spared. National Public Radio is cutting its workforce by 7 percent, which works out to 62 of 889 staffers.

And the National Football League said it is eliminating about 14 percent of its workforce at three locations in the next two months.

Earlier in the week, chip equipment maker Novellus Systems Inc. said it will cut 10 percent of its workforce through a combination of attrition and layoffs by January 31.

Danaher Corp. said it is eliminating about 1,700 net positions and 13 facilities.

And, as CFO.com report earlier in the week, Dow Chemical will cut 5,000 jobs, 3M is eliminating nearly 1,800 positions, and Anheuser-Busch-InBev is cutting 1,400 U.S. jobs.

The job losses are also dramatic overseas.

Earlier in the week, Sony said it will get rid of 8,000 jobs, or 4 percent of its global workforce. The Japanese electronics maker is hoping to cut all costs by $1.1 billion.

London-based mining and metals giant Rio Tinto said it would cut 14,000 jobs, or 13 percent of its workforce.

Swedish steelmaker SSAB is cutting 1,300 jobs, or about 14 percent of its workforce.

And in Israel, Alvarion Ltd., a maker of wireless telecom equipment, said it plans to reduce 11 percent of its global workforce of about 1,000 employees.

http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/12792307/c_12791503?f=home_todayinfinance

[Show-me]

Thousands of layoffs by DHL, ABX Air hit Wilmington, Ohio


WILMINGTON, Ohio — As hard times go, this is about as hard as it gets. The single-biggest employer in these parts is laying off about 7,500 men and women.
In a town of fewer than 13,000 people. In the midst of the worst financial crisis in generations.


http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/2008-12-15-wilmington-dhl-abx-air-layoffs_N.htm

[Show-me]

Caterpillar lays off more than 800 workers (http://uk.reuters.com/article/rbssIndustryMaterialsUtilitiesNews/idUKN1851560520081218)


CHICAGO, Dec 18 (Reuters) - Caterpillar Inc (CAT.N: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Thursday it would lay off hundreds of workers at an engine factory early next year in response to what it called a significant drop in demand for the plant's products ...

[Frixxxx]

Caterpillar lays off more than 800 workers (http://uk.reuters.com/article/rbssIndustryMaterialsUtilitiesNews/idUKN1851560520081218)


CHICAGO, Dec 18 (Reuters) - Caterpillar Inc (CAT.N: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Thursday it would lay off hundreds of workers at an engine factory early next year in response to what it called a significant drop in demand for the plant's products ...Amazing you had to get that from the UK version of Rueters,,,,,Why bother looking in an American Paper or news outlet....

Oh wait, the press is still fighting over who's going to cater the inauguration a month from now.:suspicious:

[Show-me]

Frixxxx,
I found that interesting also.

[James48843]

Polaroid files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy



NEW YORK (Reuters) – Consumer electronics company Polaroid Corp said on Thursday it had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in order to facilitate its restructuring.

The maker of iconic instamatic cameras said its bankruptcy was due to events at Petters Group Worldwide, which has owned the company since 2005.

The founder of Petters is "under investigation for alleged acts of fraud that have compromised the financial condition of Polaroid and other entities owned by Petters Group," the company said in a statement.

"Polaroid and its leadership team are not subjects of the ongoing investigation involving Petters Group," Polaroid said.

The company said the restructuring should not impact its day-to-day operations and that it was not seeking additional debtor-in-possession financing.

"Polaroid has entered bankruptcy with ample cash reserves sufficient to finance the Company's reorganization under Chapter 11," it said.

The case is In re: Polaroid Corp, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District of Minnesota, No. 08-46617

[Frixxxx]

Textron lowers 4Q outlook, to cut about 2,200 jobs

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/081222/textron_outlook.html

Another one:suspicious:

[James48843]

Unisys to cut 1,300 jobs, consolidate plants



BLUE BELL, Pa. – Unisys Corp. said it will slash 1,300 jobs globally as part of an effort to cut costs by more than $225 million a year.

The technology services provider has struggled as demand for its services has waned due to tightening credit and curbed customer spending. In November Standard and Poor's said it was taking the company off its S&P 500 index.

Unisys said late Monday that the job cuts would continue into next year.

Aside from the work force reduction, Unisys said it was taking several other steps to lower its selling, general and administrative expenses and labor costs including consolidating plants, freezing most 2009 salary increases and suspending 401(k) matches, which totaled approximately $50 million a year.

Unisys anticipates the actions will lead to a fourth-quarter charge of $80 million to $85 million.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081223/ap_on_bi_ge/unisys_job_cuts

[James48843]

Bush shoe' creates 100 new jobs in Turkey

Press Trust Of India / London December 23, 2008,

The world’s most notorious pair of black leather shoes, that made history, has generated 100 jobs in Turkey.

The footwear that robbed George W Bush of his dignity and landed its owner Iraqi journalist Muntazer al-Zaidi — who hurled them at the US President at a press meet in Baghdad — in prison, has yielded an unexpected bonanza for its maker.

Ever since the incident, Ramazan Baydan, the owner of the Istanbul-based Baydan Shoe Company, has been swamped with orders from across the world.

In fact, Baydan has recruited an additional 100 staff to meet orders for 300,000 pairs of Model 271, more than four times the shoe's normal annual sale, following an outpouring of support for Zaidi's act, The Guardian reported.

Orders have come mainly from the US and Britain, and from neighbouring Muslim countries, he said. Around 120,000 pairs have been ordered from Iraq, while a US company has placed a request for 18,000. A British firm is said to have offered to serve as European distributor for the shoes, which have been on the market since 1999 and sell at around £28 in Turkey.

A sharp rise in orders has been recorded in Syria, Egypt and Iran, where the shoemaker's federation has offered to provide Zaidi and his family with a lifetime's supply of shoes.

And to meet the mood of the marketplace, Baydan is planning to rename the model “Bush Shoe” or “Bye-Bye Bush”.

“We've been selling these shoes for years but, thanks to Bush, orders are flying in like crazy. We have even hired an agency to look at television advertising,” he was quoted as saying by the British newspaper.

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/bush-shoe-creates-100-new-jobs-in-turkey/18/24/344069/

[James48843]

Kemet cuts jobs, salaries pensions to reduce costs
Monday December 22, 10:40 am ET

Kemet, facing steeper sales declines, cuts jobs, salaries, pensions to reduce costs GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) -- Kemet Corp., which makes parts for electronic devices, said Monday it is responding to a greater-than-expected sales decline by axing jobs and cutting salaries, 401(k) contributions and pension benefits.

The Greenville, S.C.-based Kemet said it expects sales to decline by 14 percent to 17 percent in the third quarter ending Dec. 31 compared with the previous quarter.

Accounting for currency-exchange rates, primarily the euro, the decline is from 9 percent to 12 percent, Kemet said. Previously, it said it expected sales to fall about 7 percent.

Kemet said it is eliminating about 1,500 manufacturing jobs, which represent 14 percent of its work force. The job cuts will begin immediately and be completed by mid-January.

It expects to save $4 million per quarter, or $16 million annually. A charge of about $2 million will be accounted for in Kemet's fiscal quarter ending Dec. 31.

Kemet said it will re-staff lost manufacturing jobs with contract labor "where prudent."

"It is imperative that in this time of worldwide economic slowdown we match our costs to the reality of our current market environment," CEO Per Loof said.

In addition, the company said it will extend its normal holiday plant shutdown schedules at many manufacturing plants from Dec. 23 to Jan. 5.
Kemet said that where possible it will cut pay by 10 percent for salaried employees effective Jan. 1. It will exclude those on a commission-based salary.

Salary reductions are expected to be restored "when the financial performance of the company returns to acceptable levels," Kemet said.
In addition, Kemet will temporarily suspend its 401(k) contribution from 6 percent to zero for U.S. workers and also will reduce several retiree benefit programs.

Savings from these reductions will be about $1 million a month, with total savings from all cost-cutting to be $7 million per quarter beginning in February after severance payments are made in January, Kemet said.

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/081222/kemet_cost_reductions.html

[James48843]

Federal-Mogul Corp. to cut additional jobs

By Ryan Beene (rbeene@crain.com)

Another 4,600 jobs will be cut from Federal-Mogul Corp.’s payrolls on top of the 4,000 cuts the company announced in September as it responds to the continuing erosion of global automotive industry conditions.

The Southfield-based auto supplier said late Friday it was expanding the plan it announced in September to close, consolidate and downsize company facilities.

CEO José Maria Alapont said in a statement that the additional cuts are “required to prepare the company for the unprecedented challenges in the automotive industry.”

The restructuring plans are expected to cost about $80 million through 2009, in addition to the $60 million to $80 million in expected costs related to the company’s restructuring announced in September.

A total of about 8,600 jobs are expected to be eliminated. The new cuts will begin in the first quarter of 2009.

Federal-Mogul has not identified sites slated for closure, consolidation or downsizing, saying it is evaluating and consulting with the “appropriate parties,” according to a company statement.

Federal-Mogul is a supplier of powertrain and safety technologies.

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20081222/FREE/812220288/1069&rssfeed=RSS01

[Show-me]

AP
Alcoa to cut 13 pct of global work force
Tuesday January 6, 5:39 pm ET
By Daniel Lovering, AP Manufacturing Writer Alcoa to cut 13,500 employees worldwide, reduce spending and production to cope with slowdown

PITTSBURGH (AP) -- Alcoa Inc., the world's third-largest aluminum maker, said Tuesday it will cut 13,500 jobs, or 13 percent of its work force, and slash spending and output to cope with the global economic slowdown.

http://us.bc.yahoo.com/b?P=zQ36ckSOxCa6.SL3SVFC1QGsOACPGUlj5LMABvYa&T=1enhji0b9%2fX%3d1231283379%2fE%3d8988914%2fR%3df in%2fK%3d5%2fV%3d2.1%2fW%3dH%2fY%3dYAHOO%2fF%3d290 9624338%2fH%3dY29udGVudD0iY29tbW9kaXRpZXMiIGNvYnJh bmQ9IjxhIGhyZWY9aHR0cDovL3VzLnJkLnlhaG9vLmNvbS9maW 5hbmNlL25ld3MvYXBmL1NJRz0xMGtmbW9mb2wvKmh0dHA6Ly93 d3cuYXAub3JnLz48aW1nIGJvcmRlcj0wIHNyYz1odHRwOi8vdX MuaTEueWltZy5jb20vdXMueWltZy5jb20vaS91cy9maS9nci9w YXJ0bmVyX2xvZ29zL2FwMl8xNzB4MzMuZ2lmIGFsdD1BUD48L2 E.IiBjYWNoZWhpbnQ9Ijg5ODg5MTQiIGNhY2hlaGludD0iODk4 ODkxNCI-%2fQ%3d-1%2fS%3d1%2fJ%3dB8C28E44&U=13fdj18tm%2fN%3dloRmZdj8YnU-%2fC%3d715481.13179460.13348845.2006450%2fD%3dLREC %2fB%3d5587723%2fV%3d1The Pittsburgh-based company also said 1,700 contractors will be cut as part of a broad-based plan to reduce costs that includes the planned sale of four business units and a global salary and hiring freeze.

As a result of its actions, Alcoa expects total fourth-quarter charges of between $900 million and $950 million. The company plans to report quarterly results Jan. 12. Alcoa also said the moves are expected to save the company about $450 million annually, before taxes.

"These are extraordinary times, requiring speed and decisiveness to address the current economic downturn," Klaus Kleinfeld, Alcoa's president and chief executive, said in a statement.

The news comes after Alcoa announced production reductions last fall. On Tuesday, it said it will further limit smelting by more than 135,000 metric tons per year, lowering total aluminum output by more than 750,000 metric tons, or 18 percent, annually.

Production of alumina, a material used to make aluminum, will be reduced to 1.5 million metric tons per year in response to market conditions, the company said.

The production cuts are expected to be completed by the end of March.
Alcoa also said it will seek to lower costs for energy and raw materials such as coke, caustic soda and aluminum fluoride.

As part of the plan, Alcoa said it would divest its electrical and electonic systems, global foil, cast auto wheels and European transportation products businesses.

Shares of Alcoa fell nearly 4 percent in after-hours trade after rising 26 cents, or 2.2 percent, to close at $12.12 on Tuesday.

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/090106/alcoa_job_cuts.html

[James48843]

Cigna to cut about 1,100 jobs, 4 pct of work force


By TOM MURPHY
The Associated Press
Monday, January 5, 2009; 6:20 PM

INDIANAPOLIS -- Managed care provider Cigna Corp. (http://financial.washingtonpost.com/custom/wpost/html-qcn.asp?dispnav=business&mwpage=qcn&symb=CI&nav=el) said Monday the slumping economy has forced it to cut roughly 1,100 jobs, as it deals with employer customers who also are making cuts and reducing the number of people covered by insurance.

The Philadelphia-based insurer will cut about 1,000 U.S. positions and 100 outside the United States. The layoffs amount to about 4 percent of its work force, which totals roughly 28,000 people.

"All of our customers, they're reducing their work forces, and they need to reduce costs," Cigna spokesman Chris Curran said. "In order for us to be as efficient and as competitive as possible, we've got to manage costs."

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/05/AR2009010502089.html (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/05/AR2009010502089.html)

[Show-me]

Logitech to cut 15 percent of global work force


Logitech International (http://sanjose.bizjournals.com/sanjose/gen/Logitech_International_9E83507C8465481480047E4F8D1 388ED.html) has withdrawn its fiscal 2009 sales targets and is planning a restructuring that includes cutting approximately 15 percent of its work force.
Reports have put the job cuts at more than 500.
Logitech (NASDAQ:LOGI), which has its headquarters in Fremont and Switzerland, did not provide new guidance but plans to update investors along with its third-quarter results on Jan. 20.
The maker of computer mice and other peripherals said that with a deteriorating retail environment during December, it had seen weakness across all geographies and channels.
Logitech plans to announce the restructuring charges with the third-quarter results.
Which of the prospective governor candidates would be best for Silicon Valley? (http://sanjose.bizjournals.com/sanjose/poll/index.html?poll_id=7051)



San Francisco Business Times

http://sanjose.bizjournals.com/sanjose/stories/2009/01/05/daily20.html?ana=yfcpc

[DoughBoy]

http://blog.rebeltraders.net/2009/01/06/goodys-family-clothing-out-of-business/

Goodys liquidating- now that Christmas is over, who will be next?:worried:

[Thunderhorse]

Boeing to slash 4,500 jobs

Puget Sound area to bear brunt of cuts

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/395538_boeingcuts10.html?source=mypi

The global economic meltdown hit hard in the Puget Sound area Friday, as The Boeing Co. joined the growing list of American companies cutting thousands of jobs.
The Chicago-based company, whose commercial airplane headquarters is still in Seattle, announced that it will eliminate 4,500 jobs from that commercial work force in 2009, with 60-day layoff notices going out next month.
...

[James48843]

Circuit City to close 567 remaining US stores

Circuit City, unable to work out sale of company, will close 567 remaining US stores



Michael Felberbaum and Vinnee Tong, AP Business Writers
Friday January 16, 2009, 6:05 pm EST


Circuit City became the largest retailer to fall victim to the expanding financial crisis Friday, announcing it will shut down its remaining 567 U.S. stores at the cost of 34,000 more jobs after failing to sell the business.

The closure of the nation's second-biggest consumer electronics retailer spells more trouble for the nations malls, and is the latest casualty of an unprecedented pullback in consumer spending that has claimed KB Toys, Mervyns LLC and Linens 'N Things.
"Very, very sad," said Alan L. Wurtzel, son of company founder Samuel S. Wurtzel and himself a former chief executive of Circuit City. "I feel particularly badly for the people who are employed or until recently were employed."

Richmond, Va.-based Circuit City had been seeking a buyer or a deal to refinance its debt, but the hobbled credit market and consumer worries proved insurmountable. Negotiations for an acquisition extended past midnight Thursday before finally falling through, Circuit City lawyer Gregg Galardi said.
Two potential buyers -- Mexican billionaire Ricardo Salinas Pliego, who controls a chain of electronics stores in Latin America, and the Golden Gate Capital private equity firm -- considered a shrunken form of the business, retaining as many 350 stores or as few as 180. But Circuit City couldn't secure the necessary financing or support from vendors.

"This is the only possible path for our company," acting Chief Executive James A. Marcum said in a statement. "We are extremely disappointed by this outcome."

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Huennekens gave final approval to the liquidation plan Friday afternoon. Some employees were notified that they would lose their jobs and certain stores would begin close-out sales as early as Saturday.

"Since my childhood, that's been where you go to buy electronics -- Circuit City," said 37-year-old Sonya Webb, who was standing outside a store in Chattanooga, Tenn., watching as an employee set a 46-inch Sony television in her car.


http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Circuit-City-to-liquidate-apf-14084147.html/print

[James48843]

AMD to cut 1,100 jobs (Reuters)



Posted on Fri Jan 16, 2009 5:50PM EST

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Advanced Micro Devices Inc will eliminate 1,100 jobs, cut salaries and take a new $622 million charge for its acquisition of graphics chip maker ATI, bringing total writeoffs for the deal to $3.17 billion.
AMD, which trails Intel Corp in the computer chip market, said the salary decreases range from 20 percent for its two top executive to 5 percent for lower level employees in North America and voluntary pay cuts in other regions.
The company, which has been criticized for overpaying for its $5.4 billion 2006 purchase of ATI Technologies Inc, warned in December it would have to take an additional charge after taking a $800 million impairment charge in its June quarter and more than $1.5 billion in writeoffs taken in 2007.
But Charter Equity Research analyst John Dryden said the extent of the writedown was not a shock because it reflected the recent decline in AMD's share price rather than the performance of its graphics chips business.
"In fact graphics, which is 20 percent of the business, is outperforming microprocessors," said Dryden. "It's taken share from Nvidia Corp in the last couple of quarters. I expect that to extend into the first half of 2009 despite the weak economy."
As part of its cost cuts, it said Chairman Hector Ruiz and Chief Executive Dirk Meyer will temporarily take 20 percent salary cuts, while U.S. and Canadian executives at the level of vice president and higher will take 15 percent cuts.
http://tech.yahoo.com/news/nm/20090116/tc_nm/us_amd_1

[James48843]

Hertz to cut more than 4,000 jobs



DETROIT (Reuters) – Hertz Global Holdings Inc said on Friday that it would cut more than 4,000 jobs in a worldwide restructuring through the first quarter due to falling demand, and the car rental company's shares fell nearly 9 percent.
Hertz expects annualized savings of $150 million to $170 million in 2009 from the job cuts, it said. It expects to take a fourth-quarter charge of $20 million to $25 million for the cuts.
The cuts are in the car and equipment rental businesses as well as in corporate and support areas in all regions focused on positions that do not have direct contact with customers, Hertz said in a statement.
Hertz will have cut its workforce by 32 percent since August 2006 with the latest round of reductions, it said.
Hertz said it could not predict when its markets would improve. The declines pressured the volume of rentals, the pricing on rentals and the residual values of vehicles in its fleets during the fourth quarter.
The company estimated fourth-quarter net cash flow at about $1.75 billion and said it had ended 2008 with liquidity of about $4.9 billion.
Shares of Hertz were down 47 cents, or 8.7 percent, at $4.92 in midday New York Stock Exchange trade.
(Reporting by David Bailey; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090116/us_nm/us_hertz_2

[Show-me]

Nearly 40K job cuts announced as weakness persists

The domino effect: Job losses at Circuit City, WellPoint, Hertz come on heels of other cuts


NEW YORK (AP) -- This is the point in the recession where one round of job cuts leads to another.


Employers announced a total of nearly 40,000 job cuts Friday, a
lmost all of them related to problems in other parts of the economy.

Circuit City Stores Inc. said it is liquidating, closing all its U.S. stores and cutting 30,000 jobs after being hobbled, in part, by declining consumer spending. Rental car company Hertz Global Holdings Inc. is eliminating 4,000 jobs worldwide as families and business travelers forgo trips. Insurer WellPoint Inc. is cutting about 1,500 jobs, with rising unemployment leading to fewer people with health insurance.

For the moment, every economic action seems to precipitate a negative reaction. Consumers made nervous by job cuts, tumbling home prices and swooning stocks aren't spending. That's hurt retailers and manufacturers, who have closed stores, cutting their employees' jobs or hours, which has made workers more nervous, so they spend less. And the spiral continues.

Even falling gas prices will have hurt some workers. Petroleum company ConocoPhillips said Friday it will cut about 1,300 jobs, or 4 percent of its work force.

"There does seem to be a painful cycle emerging," said Dana Saporta, U.S. economist at investment bank Dresdner Kleinwort in New York. "Halting this cycle will require very aggressive fiscal and monetary policy."

Touring a factory in Ohio on Friday, President-elect Barack Obama promoted an $825 billion stimulus plan unveiled by House Democrats a day earlier.

"It's not too late to change course -- but only if we take dramatic action as soon as possible," Obama said. "The first job of my administration is to put people back to work and get our economy moving again."

With unemployment at a 16-year high of 7.2 percent in December and about 11 million Americans out of work, many economists expect worse news to come. Some say the unemployment rate could be headed for 10 percent -- or higher -- by year's end.

Some companies laying off workers also are cutting pay and stopping contributions to retirement accounts. Those steps typically decrease spending and investing by their remaining employees.

Advanced Micro Devices Inc. announced its third round of layoffs in a year Friday and will slash pay for top managers by 15 percent, other salaried workers by 10 percent and hourly workers' salaries by 5 percent.

In retail, Saks Inc. said Thursday it is slashing 1,100 jobs. The luxury retailer also eliminated merit raises in 2009, suspended matching contributions to its 401(k) plan for at least one year and suspended benefit accruals for workers who remain in the company's pension plan.

more...........

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Nearly-40K-job-cuts-announced-apf-14088518.html/print

[teknobucks]

we are entering a major depression.....this is gonna get very very nasty
SPX sub 650 certain...hope we do not see mid 400's
http://layoffdaily.com/

sell the rally ....short the heck outta any obama rally folks

[ripper]

I work part-time for Gannett, which cut about 10% of its jobs last year.
Recently, Gannett informed ALL of its employees that they would be required to take a mandatory one-week furlough (without pay) prior to April 1.
Not a layoff, but a method which should effectively reduce all employees' annual salaries by about 2%.

[tsptalk]

"Another big round of layoffs is expected at Starbucks, possibly 1,000 people — a third of its headquarters employees — and some district managers and field employees, according to an e-mail sent to a stock brokerage's customers Friday"...

More...More layoffs expected at Starbucks (http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2008665670_starbucks24.html)

[rawiron1]

GM, Home Depot, ING and Caterpillar lay off 70K!

Caterpillar, Sprint, Pfizer Slash Jobs as Sales Fall

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601110&sid=agO93.5BTWj8

Jason

[Prozium]

Texas Instruments announced 3,400 or 12% of their job force was getting cut this quarter.

[Prozium]

GM, Home Depot, ING and Caterpillar lay off 70K!

Caterpillar, Sprint, Pfizer Slash Jobs as Sales Fall

Jason

Can add IBM 2800 to that list.

[wv-girl]

Can add IBM 2800 to that list.
And yet the market finished a little higher today? Anyone know why?

[FUTURESTRADER]

And yet the market finished a little higher today? Anyone know why?

layoffs are cost-cuts, good for short term stock performance.

[James48843]

One day- and 77,000 job cuts announced. Ouch.



Jan. 26 (Bloomberg) -- Caterpillar Inc. (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/quote?ticker=CAT%3AUS), Sprint Nextel Corp. (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/quote?ticker=S%3AUS), Home Depot Inc. (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/quote?ticker=HD%3AUS) and ING Groep NV (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/quote?ticker=INGA%3ANA) led companies today announcing at least 77,000 job cuts as sales withered and construction slowed amid a global economic recession.
In the U.S., the firings brought the number of job eliminations this month to more than 150,000, according to Chicago-based executive search firm Challenger Gray & Christmas.
The firings came as American jobless claims hit a 26-year high, reaching 589,000 in the week ended Jan. 17, as shrinking demand for products and services forced companies to lower costs.
“These are not just numbers on a page,” U.S. President Barack Obama (http://search.bloomberg.com/search?q=Barack+Obama&site=wnews&client=wnews&proxystylesheet=wnews&output=xml_no_dtd&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&filter=p&getfields=wnnis&sort=date:D:S:d1) said at the White House, referring to recent job cut announcements. “We cannot afford delays” in getting an $825 billion economic recovery program through Congress.
Today’s biggest layoffs were at Peoria, Illinois-based Caterpillar. The world’s largest maker of construction equipment said it’s cutting 20,000 jobs after fourth-quarter profit fell by almost a third.
Pfizer Inc., (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/quote?ticker=PFE%3AUS) the New York-based drugmaker that’s acquiring competitor Wyeth for $68 billion, said it will close five factories and eliminate 19,000 jobs, or 15 percent, of the combined company’s workforce.
Sprint Nextel (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/quote?ticker=S%3AUS), the U.S. wireless carrier, will eliminate 8,000 jobs, or 14 percent of its workforce, in order to reduce expenses by $1.2 billion a year.
Home Depot
Home Depot (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/quote?ticker=HD%3AUS), the world’s largest home-improvement retailer, said it will cut 7,000 jobs, or 2 percent of its workforce, and exit its Expo home-décor business. Texas Instruments Inc. (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/quote?ticker=TXN%3AUS), the second-largest U.S. chipmaker, said it planned to eliminate 1,800 jobs and shed 1,600 more workers through voluntary retirements.
“Certainly since 2001, with the dot-com collapse, we haven’t seen these kinds of large cuts,” Challenger Gray spokesman James Pedderson (http://search.bloomberg.com/search?q=James+Pedderson&site=wnews&client=wnews&proxystylesheet=wnews&output=xml_no_dtd&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&filter=p&getfields=wnnis&sort=date:D:S:d1) said in an interview. “In terms of the number of companies and the number of cuts, this morning is certainly unusual.”
The biggest month for U.S. job cuts since Challenger Gray has been compiling data was January 2002, when 248,475 positions were eliminated. Today’s figures included layoffs outside the U.S.
Before today, at least 15 companies announced they planned to eliminate 93,000 positions so far in January, Challenger Gray said. Topping that list was Circuit City Stores Inc. (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/quote?ticker=CCTYQ%3AUS), the bankrupt consumer-electronics retailer that’s shutting down its U.S. stores and firing more than 30,000 people.
General Motors Corp. (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/quote?ticker=GM%3AUS), the largest U.S. automaker, said today it will eliminate shifts at Michigan and Ohio plants, shedding 2,000 jobs as sales drop.
European Jobs
In Europe, ING (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/quote?ticker=INGA%3ANA), the biggest Dutch financial-services company, said it will reduce its workforce by 5.4 percent, eliminating 7,000 jobs, after its second consecutive quarterly loss.
Royal Philips Electronics NV (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/quote?ticker=PHIA%3ANA), Europe’s largest maker of consumer electronics, said it will cut 6,000 positions after its first quarterly loss in almost six years.
Corus, the unit of India’s Tata Steel Ltd. (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/quote?ticker=TATA%3AIN) that’s Europe’s second-biggest steelmaker, said it will reduce its workforce by 8 percent, or 3,500 jobs, as demand from builders and automakers declines.
Barnes Group Inc. (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/quote?ticker=B%3AUS), the aerospace manufacturer, said today it had reduced its workforce by an additional 800 positions to 5,700 as of Dec. 31, citing “severe declines in the transportation” market and the effects of the Boeing Co. strike.
Lincoln National Corp., the life-insurer, said it’s cutting 5 percent of its staff, or 540 jobs, after posting five straight declines in quarterly profit.
Eliminating Workers
Brooks Automation Inc., a maker of robots and pumps used to produce microchips, said it’s eliminating 350 more jobs after reducing its workforce by 10 percent in the fourth quarter of last year.
Altus Pharmaceuticals Inc. said it will cut 75 percent of its workforce after realigning its product offerings.
Caterpillar fell 8.4 percent and Pfizer dropped 10 percent at 4 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. Home Depot rose 4.7 percent and Sprint gained 1.2 percent. Texas Instruments gained 4.9 percent following the announcement after the close of regular trading.
Last week, International Business Machines Corp. cut at least 1,400 sales jobs, according to a copy of a separation agreement obtained by Bloomberg.

[James48843]

Unemployment Rates for States --Monthly Rankings
Seasonally Adjusted -as of Dec. 2008
Rank State % Unemployment Rate

1 WYOMING 3.4
2 NORTH DAKOTA 3.5
3 SOUTH DAKOTA 3.9
4 NEBRASKA 4.0
5 UTAH 4.3
6 IOWA 4.6
7 NEW HAMPSHIRE 4.6
8 NEW MEXICO 4.9
9 OKLAHOMA 4.9
10 WEST VIRGINIA 4.9
11 KANSAS 5.2
12 MONTANA 5.4
13 VIRGINIA 5.4
14 HAWAII 5.5
15 MARYLAND 5.8
16 LOUISIANA 5.9
17 TEXAS 6.0
18 COLORADO 6.1
19 ARKANSAS 6.2
20 DELAWARE 6.2
21 WISCONSIN 6.2
22 IDAHO 6.4
23 VERMONT 6.4
24 ALABAMA 6.7
25 PENNSYLVANIA 6.7
26 ARIZONA 6.9
27 MASSACHUSETTS 6.9
28 MINNESOTA 6.9
29 MAINE 7.0
30 NEW YORK 7.0
31 CONNECTICUT 7.1
32 NEW JERSEY 7.1
33 WASHINGTON 7.1
34 MISSOURI 7.3
35 ALASKA 7.5
36 ILLINOIS 7.6
37 KENTUCKY 7.8
37 OHIO 7.8
39 TENNESSEE 7.9
40 MISSISSIPPI 8.0
41 FLORIDA 8.1
42 GEORGIA 8.1
43 INDIANA 8.2
44 NORTH CAROLINA 8.7 4
5 DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 8.8
46 OREGON 9.0
47 NEVADA 9.1
48 CALIFORNIA 9.3
49 SOUTH CAROLINA 9.5
50 RHODE ISLAND 10.0
51 MICHIGAN 10.6

[James48843]

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