Layoff Tracker

Troubled times ahead : 5 major layoffs in USA

2012-02-10T07:37:00.002+05:30

A lot of people were trumpeting the news that headline unemployment rates nationwide dipped to the lowest level in three years this past January. That is good news, no doubt about it — even if the 8.3% rate isn’t as low as we would like to see it. As long as the rate is dropping, there is cause for optimism.

However, let’s not set off the fireworks just yet. There are serious signs that layoffs could be on the rise again and that our improvement in the unemployment rate could be counteracted soon.

For starters, 53,486 in planned job cuts this January marked the largest layoff tally since September and represented a 39% surge in job cuts compared with the previous year. That’s according to outplacement company Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

What’s more, the recent drumbeat of cutbacks seems to be increasing across all industries — consumer brands, airlines, drugmakers and banks.

This is not to say the economy is in for a “double dip,” or that the jobless rate will crest 10% once more. But for those folks who think the economy has definitively turned the corner, here are some unfortunate reminders that we might be in store for more trouble in the job market:

8,700 Layoffs at Pepsi: Soft drink giant PepsiCo (NYSE:PEP) announced recently that it will be cutting 8,700 jobs from its work force. The Pepsi job cuts amount to 3% of the global work force, but you can bet that since its top rival Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) has been pushing aggressively into overseas markets, Pepsi isn’t going to take its foot off the gas abroad. Expect the lion’s share of those losses to come at home, in the United States.

13,000 Layoffs at American Airlines: Parent AMR Corp. (PINK:AAMRQ) recently announced a huge job cuts for American Airlines. The company said it wants to reduce labor costs by $1.25 billion a year, or about 20%. Admittedly, the carrier needs to do something since AMR declared bankruptcy in November, but that’s cold comfort to the employees who will be getting pink slips.

2,000 Layoffs at Novartis: This big pharma cutback isn’t as deep as some of the other cuts on this list, but it still is part of a disturbing trend. Novartis (NYSE:NVS) made a targeted reduction to staffers that work on its Diovan blood-pressure medication. As Diovan goes off patent protection, sales will slump, and NVS is going to cut back as a result. Expect this trend to continue across pharmaceutical companies as more blockbuster drugs go “off patent.” AstraZeneca (NYSE:AZN), for instance, announced 7,300 cuts — but luckily, it is headquartered in London, so Americans might be spared most of those layoffs.

1,600 Layoffs (and counting) at Morgan Stanley: Again, here we have a relatively small cut with big implications. Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) just cut 1,600 jobs in the past few months — but reports indicate another round of Morgan Stanley layoffs is in the works. This is after some 60,000 job cuts across big banks in 2011, and a steady drumbeat of smaller compensation for bankers. Sure, many Americans feel little sympathy for Wall Street fat cats … but let’s not get too gleeful about the fact that the financial sector continues to put people out of work as it struggles.

2,160 Layoffs at Boeing: It was big news in January when we learned Boeing (NYSE:BA) will pull out of Wichita entirely by 2013, leaving more than 2,160 workers without jobs and quitting the Kansas town it has called home since the 1920s. Defenders might say that Boeing is in fact creating jobs right now too, with a new facility in South Carolina opening up. However, that site is the subject of a legal battle because of complaints that Boeing moved operations just to bust its union and keep wages low. Even if some jobs are created, they aren’t going to be as well-paying as union positions.

Source: Investor Place

Pepsi announces 8,700 layoffs worldwide

2012-02-10T07:35:00.000+05:30

Pepsi announced Thursday that it would slash some 8,700 jobs in its global workforce to boost savings and returns to investors.

The cuts are part of a new three-year productivity program expected to generate $1.5 billion in cost savings.

"This effort includes headcount reductions of about 8,700 employees across 30 countries, about three percent of the company's global workforce," the company said in a statement.

"The productivity programs will enhance the company's cost-competitiveness as well as provide a source of funding for future brand-building and innovation initiatives."

The company said that meanwhile it will add $500-600 million to advertising and marketing around the world, but especially focused on the North Americas market.

Source: Brecorder

Bank of America cuts 450 jobs in Concord, California

2012-02-10T07:34:00.000+05:30

Bank of America handed out hundreds of lay-off notices Wednesday to employees in Concord.

Roughly 450 positions were eliminated, most in a customer service center and in the bank's fraud and claims units.

Bank of America says those units will be closing in late May and the job cuts are intended to consolidate operations and reduce costs.

All employees can apply for other available bank jobs or may be eligible for severance pay.

Source: ABC Local

Xerox cuts jobs in product research and engineering

2012-02-10T07:32:00.000+05:30

Some Xerox employees in product research and engineering will receive pink slips today, according to a spokesperson for Xerox.

Xerox previously stated in its fourth quarter earnings report that there would be some restructuring in the first quarter of 2012 – these layoffs are part of that.

The spokesperson said that although every position effected is significant, the numbers are small in relationship to its 140,000 global employees.

Source: Webster Post

Airport concessions to lay off 530 employees

2012-02-10T07:31:00.000+05:30

An airport concessions joint venture run by Atlanta-based Concessions International expects to lay off about 530 employees starting next month, though many of those workers could find jobs with new restaurants.

Those affected in the move by the joint venture between Concessions International and Paschal’s include servers, bartenders, kitchen managers and others. A gradual layoff is expected to begin in March.

The city expects some 1,600 positions to open up, as the airport adds concessions for its new international terminal and elsewhere. And Concessions International expects to hire hundreds of employees through a different joint venture to open other airport restaurants under a new contract.

However, many employees will still lose their jobs with their existing employer.

“We’re hoping that some of the people being laid off will capture some of those 1,600 jobs,” said Deborah Lum, executive director of the Atlanta Workforce Development Agency.

Delaware North, a new concessions firm to enter the airport in the changeover, said it is “creating hundreds of jobs.” The Unite Here labor union said Delaware North and major concessionaire HMSHost have signed agreements to guarantee a smooth transition for the workforce, while Concessions International did not sign such an agreement. The airport plans to hold job fairs in March for current concessions employees and in April for all job seekers.

Source: AJC

Nokia to layoff 4,000 employees in Mexico, Hungary and Finland

2012-02-10T07:28:00.004+05:30

It has been revealed that Nokia has suffered a major 1.4 billion dollar loss in its third quarter sales of 2011. The loss has made the company officials decide that they would lay off 4000 employees in three countries, Mexico, Hungary and Finland.

Layoffs procedure is expected to get complete by the end of 2012. However, it is not the first time that Nokia has announced layoffs. Since 2010, it has been laying off their employees which have raised concerns among the governments where Nokia plants have been situated.

In addition, it has also been unveiled that Nokia has been trying to shift its manufacturing base to China and other Asian countries. The company has said to have witnessed 21% decline in the sales in 2011. Resultant of which, the company has taken the decision to lay off its 4000 employees.

The company has clarified that their units at the affected places would remain active but would only cater to those customers who would demand their services. Nokia’s Spokesperson James Etheridge said that they are trying to reduce the manpower to cover up the loss. As a part of it, they would be moving their production units to Beijing and Masan, South Korea and China.

It was not a big surprise for industry insiders, who told that more than a choice, it was a decision taken under compulsion. Mikko Ervasti, who is a Helsinki-based analyst at Evli Bank, said, “This is part of the actions Nokia has to take to reach the cost savings target of 1 billion euros by the end of 2013”.

The count must have reached to 14,500 job cuts when one adds up the layoff count which was being announced by Chief Executive Officer Stephen Elop at the time when they united hands with Microsoft Corp.

Source: Top News

C&D Technologies relocates to Mexico, 120 jobs lost in US

2012-02-10T07:27:00.001+05:30

C&D Technologies Inc. will relocate some of production from its Milwaukee facility to a plant in Reynosa, Mexico.

While the Milwaukee facility will remain, the move eliminates 120 local jobs. About 100 employees will remain at the plant, 900 E. Keefe Ave.

The company completed a comprehensive business evaluation and cited “intense competitive pricing pressure” as the reason for moving its power system product lines to Mexico. C&D said many of its competitors have also moved production to Mexico for cost reasons.

“This was a difficult decision but one that is sound and will allow us to continue production in Milwaukee,” said Jeffrey Graves, C&D president and chief executive officer.
“Over the last five years, we have invested over $20 million to modernize our Milwaukee facility, streamline production, remove costs and improve efficiencies. Over the past several months, we were able to structure a solution that keeps C&D here and will help us realize those efficiencies. We’ve been a part of this community since 1999, and my hope is that we will be able to continue to make a business case for staying in Milwaukee in the years to come.”

C&D, based in Blue Bell, Pa., manufactures reserve power systems and electronic power supplies. It has three other U.S. factories and another foreign operation in Shanghai, China.

The company is in the research and development stages of a federally funded lithium-ion battery program, which it said is not affected by the layoffs. C&D plans to start production on that line in Milwaukee by the end of 2013.

Source: Biz Times

Peter Pan Bus Lines to layoff 80 workers at Waterford

2012-02-08T07:42:00.002+05:30

Peter Pan Bus Lines Inc. will lay off all 80 workers at its Waterford facility and close the office at the end of this month due to Foxwoods Resort Casino’s decision to end its off-site employee shuttle program.

All drivers, mechanics, and administrators at the 30 Fargo Road depot will be let go on Feb. 29, the day Foxwoods plans to terminate the shuttle service, Peter Pan spokesman Robert Schwarz said Tuesday.

Foxwoods and Peter Pan have been in talks aimed at having the Massachusetts-based bus company create a public line to replace the shuttles, most of which are run by Peter Pan. No plans have been finalized, Schwarz said Tuesday.

“That’s totally up in the air,” he said. “It’s a work in progress. We’re not sure. Foxwoods has to make up its mind.”

Peter Pan, one of the Northeast’s largest bus companies, hopes to transfer some of the Waterford workers to its Rocky Hill facility, which is the office closest to Waterford.

Bill Satti, spokesman for the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, owner of Foxwoods and MGM Grand at Foxwoods, couldn’t be reached for immediate comment Tuesday.

Source: Norwich Bulletin

UBS to layoff 35 jobs in Asia-Pacific

2012-02-08T07:39:00.001+05:30

Swiss bank UBS AG is laying off about 35 people in the Asia-Pacific region, two people familiar with the situation said, as one of the region's biggest investment banks aims to cut costs amid shrinking revenue globally.

The cuts amount to around 0.5% of the 6,500 people that UBS employs in the Asia-pacific region, one of the people said.

It isn't clear where all the cuts are being made. But in Hong Kong, those laid off include four research analysts, including some who cover China-related stocks, one of the people said. Four members of the bank's information-technology staff in Hong Kong and Singapore have also been cut.

While Asia remains a fast-growing region for the global banks, as surging economies embrace Western-style stock listings and deal making, banks are feeling the squeeze of sluggish markets, a global economic slowdown and the fallout from Europe's debt crisis. Bank of America Corp., for one, is cutting around 20% of its Asia-Pacific managing directors at its Bank of America Merrill Lynch unit by the end of the first quarter.

Among other banks, Nomura Holdings Inc., Daiwa Securities Group Inc. and Samsung Securities Co. are also reducing staff in Asia after expanding rapidly outside their home countries in recent years.

UBS, Switzerland's largest bank by assets, is sharply reducing its global investment bank and shedding flagging businesses as it focuses on its private-banking operations. It said Tuesday that it cut global headcount by 1,101 in the fourth quarter.

But it has a successful investment-banking business in the region, especially in Chinese and Australian deals. UBS made an estimated $504 million in fees in the Asia-Pacific region outside Japan last year, with 4.5% of the investment banking market, according to Dealogic, just behind Credit Suisse Group's $507 million. In the seven prior years, UBS topped the regional rankings for deals in terms of the U.S. dollar value.

France's Société Générale SA is among the other European banks that are scaling back on capital-intensive areas in the region. Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC has said it will eliminate 3,500 jobs globally and exit a handful of business lines, including stock underwriting and mergers-and-acquisitions advisory.

UBS's cuts followed the discovery of unauthorized trades in London caused $2.3 billion in losses. The bank then unveiled plans for a major reduction in its investment bank, saying it would cut the unit's assets by half and return to its roots by focusing on its private bank.

Source: WSJ

Supervalu layoffs 800 workers

2012-02-08T07:37:00.004+05:30

Grocery giant Supervalu is laying off 800 workers nationwide, including 200 in its home state of Minnesota, the struggling retailer said Tuesday.

Most of the Minnesota layoffs will occur at Supervalu's corporate offices in Eden Prairie, although 20 positions will be eliminated at its Cub Foods regional office in Stillwater, said Mike Siemienas, a Supervalu spokesman. A smaller number of layoffs will affect Supervalu's distribution center in Hopkins.

The layoffs represent about 7 percent of Supervalu's workforce in Minnesota, where it has about 3,000 employees.

"These reductions are necessary to help further strengthen and accelerate Supervalu's business turnaround in a very competitive marketplace," Supervalu Chief Executive Craig Herkert said in a prepared statement. "While the announcement of a workforce reduction is difficult news to share, due to its direct impact on our associates, these changes will allow us to better connect with customers and put more authority in the hands of people who interact more closely with our customers."

Siemienas reiterated that store-level employees who work with shoppers - the cashiers, clerks, department managers and the like - are not included in this round of layoffs.

One hard-hit area is information technology, where 149 Minnesota positions are being eliminated as those jobs are outsourced. Supervalu has signed a managed-services contract with Tata Consultancy Services, which will operate IT services from India as

well as in other foreign and domestic sites.
"The IT department was notified back in October that this transition was going to be taking place, so that department has been very upfront with its associates about what the plan was," Siemienas said.

Supervalu owns regional grocery chains across the United States, including market-leading Cub Foods in Minnesota, Jewel-Osco in Chicago, Albertson's on the West Coast and Save-A-Lot discount stores, which are most popular in the South.

Supervalu has struggled in recent years, as middle-market supermarkets try to fend off aggressive competition from non-unionized discounters like Walmart, Target and Aldi, as well as from shopping clubs like Costco and Sam's Club.

In 2006, Supervalu doubled-down on the supermarket concept, buying most of the troubled Albertson's grocery empire. The deal increased Supervalu's national footprint to 2,400 stores but left the company burdened by huge debt and locked into a difficult segment of the fast-changing grocery business.

Ever since, the company has been selling off assets and pruning, trying to turn things around, but its struggle has continued. Of the 17 analysts who follow the stock, only three rate Supervalu as a "buy."

Supervalu shares were mostly flat on the news, sliding 6 cents to $6.87.

Source: Twin Cities

AmMed Direct cuts 223 jobs

2012-02-08T07:36:00.003+05:30

Competition in the diabetic supply business led AmMed Direct LLC to give layoff notices to its 223 employees on Tuesday as it prepares to sell assets to a Florida-based competitor and then stop operating.

The deal with Arriva Medical of Coral Springs, Fla., is part of a consolidation trend in the mail-order diabetic supply business as regulatory changes create uncertainty.

Medicare, for instance, is rolling out a new competitive bidding system to determine which companies would continue to provide supplies to its beneficiaries and at what price -- perhaps lower rates.

“Several companies are trying to get bigger because they know there’s going to be fewer companies, and they want to be one of the survivors,” said industry consultant Tom Milam, who expects the number of vendors nationally to fall from as many as 500 to as few as 20 companies.

The acquisition would be the second in a month for Arriva, a national provider of diabetic testing supplies, including meters and test strips.

Arriva had roughly $42 million in annual revenues at year-end. Earlier, it acquired mail-order supplier Direct Diabetic Source of Sunrise, Fla., for roughly $5 million.

Last fall, Arriva itself was acquired by publicly traded health care management company Alere Inc., of Waltham, Mass., for roughly $83 million in cash and stock.

In a notice to the Tennessee labor department this week, AmMed said Arriva intends to employ about 90 agents at a call center it plans to open in Nashville by subleasing a portion of AmMed’s office building here.

AmMed employees will get a chance to apply for those jobs soon, and AmMed itself will continue to use some employees to handle customers over the next 30 to 90 days.

All employees will receive wages and benefits through the next two months or until they’re hired by Arriva, according to a notice sent state officials under the WARN Act, which requires companies to give advance word of sizable layoffs.

Founded in 1999, AmMed grew to more than 400 employees as it rode a sharp jump in the number of Americans diagnosed with diabetes. It offered education and support to diabetic patients in addition to test supplies through the mails.

When Congress passed a prescription drug benefit for seniors, the company expanded into providing medications to people with diabetes.

But last summer, AmMed laid off 60 employees as the company shut down its pharmacy operations amid competition from large pharmacy benefit managers that dominate that niche. The PBMs that once awarded AmMed contracts to provide drugs through the mail to their members under various insurance plans opened their own mail-order pharmacies, making it more difficult for AmMed and other vendors to compete and win contracts.

Last month, AmMed chief executive Dennis Berry became the CEO of Tennessee Health Management, the Parsons, Tenn.-based company that owns and oversees AmMed.

In early 2010, AmMed also let go 80 people -- or about 17 percent of its staff at the time -- as the company faced internal issues and an uncertain U.S. economy.

Source: Tennessean

MetLife to layoff 55 employees

2012-02-07T07:52:00.001+05:30

MetLife Inc. has announced plans to leave the home mortgage business, closing their Hauppauge office and laying off 55 employees.

MetLife filed a WARN notice with New York State on Feb. 2, citing "economic" reasons for ending its home mortgage origination operations. It will begin laying off employees on April 30, closing their Hauppauge office by May 31.

Long Island Business News reports that MetLife is retiring thousands of employees nationwide, as it closes its mortgage division. MetLife Bank is no longer accepting new loans for forward mortgage applications. However, it will continue to originate reverse mortgages, according to LIBN's report.

Current applicants already in the process do not need to worry, as Metlife has promised to “honor all contractual commitments for loans in process."

Source: Hauppauge Patch

Eastman Kodak plans to cut 80 jobs this month

2012-02-07T07:51:00.001+05:30

Local Eastman Kodak Co. employees have been told that about 16 percent of the company’s local work force — about 80 employees — will be laid off this month.

The future of some 500 local Kodak jobs has been uncertain since the Rochester, N.Y.-based company filed for bankruptcy protection last month.

Christopher Veronda, a Kodak spokesman, confirmed Monday that employees were told today that layoffs were coming.

“We are making adjustments to improve profitability of the business,” Veronda said in an e-mail to the Dayton Daily News. “It’s important to remember that Dayton is still the home base for our commercial inkjet business. We do R&D, marketing and manufacturing there.”

The company and observers have said that the company’s commercial inkjet operations at the Miami Valley Research Park in Kettering should be crucial to its future. Employees and contractors work there developing and building commercial inkjet printers, large systems capable of cranking out 4,000 digital-format, photo-quality pages a minute at a cost of less than one cent a page.

Bruce Pearson, president and chief executive for the Miami Valley Research Park, where Kodak operates locally, said he had not heard of layoff plans from the company.

“Mike (Marsh, Kodak’s general manager in Kettering) said they continue to develop product, sell product, ship product,” Pearson said.

When it filed for bankruptcy protection last month, the photography and film pioneer said it had obtained a $950 million debtor-in-possession credit facility with an 18-month maturity from Citigroup to help it continue to operate during bankruptcy proceedings. A bankruptcy court in New York initially approved $650 million of that financing.

Shortly after the filing, Kodak said that it has received permission from the bankruptcy court to pay employees as usual, maintain all “customer programs” and continue to use current cash management systems and bank accounts.

Since last summer, the company has been trying to sell patents in a bid to stay afloat.
No layoff notice or “WARN” (Worker Adjustment Retraining Notice) notice for Kodak could be found on the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services web site Monday afternoon.

Generally, large employers are required to file WARN notices with Ohio government if they plan to lay off 50 or more employees in a 30-day period.

Benjamin Johnson, a spokesman for the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, said he had not seen a WARN letter or notice from Kodak.

Source: Springfield News Sun

Fisker Automotive layoffs 26 in Delaware, 45 in California

2012-02-07T07:49:00.005+05:30

A cash crunch has forced Fisker Automotive to lay off 26 of about 100 workers refurbishing the former General Motors plant near Newport for a U.S. manufacturing base for the California start-up firm.

The layoffs, which affected both regular employees and subcontractors, come as Fisker trims expenses while it waits to qualify to draw down more cash from the Department of Energy, which conditionally promised to lend the automaker $529 million to help build its first two models and get its Delaware operations running.

The company, which also laid off 40-45 workers at its California headquarters, must meet specific fundraising, production and sales goals to qualify for successive disbursements from the loan. Fisker is behind schedule for producing and selling its first model, the $108,000 Karma sedan.

“Until that happens, they’re trying to preserve the cash that they have,” said Alan Levin, Delaware’s director of economic development. “And unfortunately, until they meet the milestone that DOE continues to set … they’re not able to access the additional capital that they need.”

In recent weeks, the company has scaled back 2012 sales projections for the Karma luxury sports car, blaming slow mileage and emissions certification processes that took longer than expected. It also needed to recall sold models to fix a coolant hose problem and, later, to issue a software upgrade to tame a balky console computer.

Fisker has said it would begin assembling the company’s second plug-in hybrid model – still with just the project name “Nina” – at the Boxwood Road plant in mid-2013. Prototypes were to begin rolling out of the factory this fall.

A Fisker spokesman said Monday that negotiations are under way with the Energy Department to modify the loan achievement goals to allow some cash to be drawn down.

“To date we have received $193 million of the $529 million Department of Energy loan, mostly for the Karma program, and received our last reimbursement in May 2011,” Fisker spokesman Roger Ormisher said in a statement Monday. “We are renegotiating some terms of the DOE agreement for the $336 million balance of the loan related to the Project Nina program.”

Source: Delaware Online

South Africa's Seardel Investment Corporation to layoff 1,500 workers

2012-02-07T07:48:00.002+05:30

Seardel Investment Corporation Ltd., the largest clothing and textile manufacturer in southern Africa, plans to retrench around 1,500 workers at its Western Cape and KawZulu-Natal factories, in its effort to battle low margins.

Currently Seardel has started the consultation process with Southern African Clothing and Textile Workers Union (SACTWU), as required by section 189 of the Labour Relations Act.

The consultation process, which is expected to last about 60 days, would decide on dismissal of 1,000 workers from the company’s Western Cape factories and another 500 workers from the KwaZulu-Natal based Ladysmith manufacturing unit.

The consultation would also decide on compensation to retrenched workers, in addition to retirement benefits.

Seardel’s move to layoff workers has come at a time when the South African Government is making efforts to save and create jobs in the country.

For the six months to September 2011, Seardel registered an operating loss of 50 million rands in its clothing operations, compared to its loss of 20 million rands recorded during the same period in 2010.

It is for the second time that Seardel has run into financial difficulties. Earlier in 2008, Seardel was rescued by Hosken Consolidated Investments (HCI), but it still had to lay off 4,000 workers and shut some divisions.

Stuart Queen, Seardel CEO, said the company has informed the workers’ union that it proposes to downsize the number of workers owing to margin pressures.

He said the firm’s clothing division has continued to run into loss and this has affected its input costs. Hence, the company has decided to analyse and remove low-margin manufacturing across the board, he added.

He revealed that the retrenchment move would also help in balancing the company’s order books.

South African textile and garment industry is currently facing difficult trading situation with increasing cost of raw materials and retailers preferring imports to locally made goods.

Source: Fibre2Fashion

Greece plans to cut 15,000 public sector jobs

2012-02-07T07:47:00.001+05:30

Greece has agreed to lay off 15,000 public sector workers by the end of 2012, a government minister said overnight, as international pressure mounts on Athens to agree on austerity measures needed to secure major new debt agreements.

The cuts will come either by abolishing or downsizing a number of public sector bodies, Administrative Reform Minister Dimitris Reppas said in a statement.

The announcement signalled a concession after meetings between Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos and the country's political leaders over a reform program demanded by the country's creditors had been pushed back for another day. Party leaders remain at odds over broad wage cuts, one of the most politically sensitive demands issued by Greece's creditors.

The country is scrambling to negotiate last minute details with officials from the European Commission, International Monetary Fund and the European Central Bank -- known as the troika -- on the new loan program.

Mr Papademos was expected to meet with the troika officials this morning.

Pressure has been growing on Greece from its eurozone partners to accept a new round of painful austerity in exchange for a €130 billion ($159bn) loan promised to the country in October. Without that aid, Greece faces a €14.4bn bond redemption next month it can't pay, raising the spectre of a disorderly default by the country.

Meanwhile, the European Commission gave its strongest warning yet to Greece's political leaders to accept the latest austerity measures and complete talks with private creditors on a debt restructuring, saying overnight the country has already missed important deadlines.

Mr Papademos has called on the three parties that make up his coalition government to back the reforms being demanded, including highly controversial cuts in private sector pay, even as Greece girds for elections widely expected to take place in April.

As a condition for further aid, Greece's official lenders have demanded cross-party support for the reform and austerity program, to ensure there is no backsliding after a new government takes office this spring.

Despite the delays, the three party leaders -- from the Socialist, or Pasok, party; the New Democracy party and the nationalist Laos party -- were close to agreeing on a 20 per cent cut in Greece's minimum wage, two senior government officials said.

Reflecting growing optimism a deal was close, the Athens stock exchange closed 3 per cent higher at 785 points this morning, bucking a broader downturn in other European exchanges.

Overnight, the leaders of France and Germany turned up the heat on Greece, saying the indebted eurozone country won't receive new bailout funds next month unless it implements austerity measures.

Speaking after a meeting in Paris, France's President Nicolas Sarkozy and Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel also urged all Greek parties, currently working together in a caretaker government, to commit to the austerity package before general elections in the spring.

"We are saying to our Greek friends that they must decide now," French President Nicolas Sarkozy said at a news conference after meeting German Chancellor Angela Merkel. "Funds won't be disbursed if these decisions aren't taken."

Apart from the layoffs the troika also has been demanding new cutbacks in government spending and steep cuts in supplemental pensions paid to retirees.

According to Greek officials, the political leaders are near a deal that would reduce those supplementary pension benefits by about 20 per cent. Two-month bonus salaries paid to Greek workers each year are expected to be kept intact, but could be trimmed.

"Unless there is a revolt in any of the three parties, the leaders are expected to give their consent for the cuts," one Greek official with direct knowledge of the talks said. The new austerity package would then have to be voted into law by the country's parliament.

But signs of popular protest are looming. Greece's two major umbrella unions said overnight they will hold a 24-hour nationwide general strike today -- the latest in a string of strikes called to protest successive waves of austerity measures Greece has taken in the past two years.

Apart from the popular reaction on the streets, the measures are likely to face resistance among lawmakers, many of whom have already balked at voting for new cutbacks. Yesterday, two Socialist lawmakers signalled they would vote against the reforms -- although it is unlikely a revolt by deputies will imperil the government's super majority in parliament. The three parties who make up the coalition control 252 seats in the 300-member parliament.

After a meeting lasting more than five hours on Sunday, Mr Papademos said the political leaders had agreed on some of the basic points of the international lenders' demands. Among them are making cuts equal to 1.5 per cent of gross domestic product in 2012, steps to recapitalise Greece's banks and measures to boost the country's flagging competitiveness.

At the same time as it negotiates a new loan deal, Athens is also in talks with private sector creditors over a planned €100bn debt writedown that is also a precondition for the new loan.

The talks with the private sector creditors are said to be very close to being finalised, after the creditors agreed to accept lower interest rates on the new bonds Greece will offer after the writedown. But there are concerns in other European capitals and within the IMF the debt restructuring doesn't go far enough in reducing Greece's debt burden.

Source: The Australian

Good news: Unemployment drops to 8.3%

2012-02-04T07:45:00.001+05:30

Employment climbed more than forecast in January and the U.S. jobless rate unexpectedly fell to the lowest in three years, casting doubt on the Federal Reserve’s pledge to keep interest rates low until late 2014.

The 243,000 increase in payrolls was the most since April and exceeded all forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey, Labor Department figures showed in Washington. The unemployment rate dropped to 8.3 percent, the lowest since February 2009.

Stock futures and bond yields jumped as the report fueled optimism the economy is weathering the European debt crisis. The data may boost President Barack Obama’s re-election bid and come one week after Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said the economy wasn’t growing fast enough to push unemployment lower.

“Further Fed stimulus is probably limited at this point,” said John Silvia, chief economist at Wells Fargo Securities LLC in Charlotte, North Carolina. “The drop in the unemployment rate has to be very, very positive from the Fed’s point of view.”

The contract on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index expiring in March rose 0.9 percent to 1,334.0 at 8:47 a.m. in New York. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note climbed to 1.91 percent from 1.82 percent late yesterday.

The median projection in the Bloomberg survey called for a rise of 140,000 payrolls after an initially reported 200,000 gain in December. Estimates of the 89 economists ranged from increases of 95,000 to 225,000. Revisions added a total of 60,000 jobs to payrolls in November and December. The Labor Department revised December’s gain to 203,000.

Broad-Based Gains

The gains in employment were broad-based, including manufacturing, construction, temporary help agencies, accounting firms, restaurants and retailers. The number of industries showing job gains climbed to 64.1 in January from 62.4 a month earlier.

Factory workers put in an average 41.9 hours of work each week, the most since January 1998, while overtime hours climbed to the highest since March 2007. Manufacturing payrolls increased by 50,000 in January, the most in a year.

The unemployment rate, derived from a separate survey of households, was forecast to hold at 8.5 percent, according to the survey median. The drop in the jobless rate reflected a 381,000 decrease in unemployment at the same time 250,000 Americans entered the labor force.

Private Payrolls

Private payrolls, which exclude government agencies, rose 257,000 in January after a revised gain of 220,000 the prior month, marking the biggest back-to-back gain since March-April. It was projected to climb by 160,000.

Peoria, Illinois-based Caterpillar Inc., the world’s biggest maker of earthmoving equipment, plans to increase employment this year as it expands facilities, including in Victoria, Texas, and Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Chief Financial Officer Edward Rapp said yesterday.

“Those are the things that will lead to employment growth here,” Rapp said in an interview with Betty Liu on Bloomberg Television’s “In the Loop.”

Employment at service-providers increased 162,000, the most in four months and reflecting faster job gains in retail, transportation and leisure and hospitality.

Tibco Software Inc. plans to hire 500 people in the U.S. this year as the economy improves and Europe works out its debt crisis, Vivek Ranadive, chief executive officer of the Palo Alto, California-based company said in an interview.

Hiring ‘Rapidly’

“We are hiring quite rapidly now, all in sales and service,” Ranadive said last week at the World Economic Forum’s annual conference in Davos, Switzerland. “It’s a good time to hire.”

Construction companies added 21,000 workers last month. Government payrolls decreased by 14,000 in January, reflecting cuts at the federal and local levels.

Average hourly earnings rose 0.2 percent to $23.29, today’s report showed. The average work week for all workers held at 34.5 hours.

The so-called underemployment rate -- which includes part- time workers who’d prefer a full-time position and people who want work but have given up looking -- decreased to 15.1 percent from 15.2 percent.

The Fed said on Jan. 25 after a two-day meeting that it would keep its benchmark lending rate low “at least” until late 2014 from a prior target of mid-2013.

Bernanke on Employment

“We still have a long way to go before the labor market can be said to be operating normally,” Bernanke told the House Budget Committee in Washington yesterday. “Fortunately, over the past few months, indicators of spending, production and job- market activity have shown some signs of improvement.”

With today’s jobs report, the government issued its annual benchmark update, aligning the data with corporate tax records covering the period from April 2010 to March 2011. The Labor Department added 165,000 to the job count over the period.

The report also included methodology changes to the household survey, incorporating new population data from the decennial census, according to the Labor Department.

It also included changes to the figures used to adjust the data for seasonal swings affecting numbers back to January 2007.

Source: Business Week

Cox Communications to cut 100 jobs

2012-02-04T07:43:00.004+05:30

Cox Communications will lay off more than 100 employees when the cable operator finally winds down its wireless operations next month, according to a report Friday by Atlanta Business Chronicle.

Cox director of media relations Todd Smith confirmed that some jobs will be "impacted," but he declined to confirm a number.

"As previously announced, our wireless strategy has changed and we must adjust our workforce to align with our new strategy," Smith said. "Our employees have done everything we have asked and for that we are thankful. We are extremely focused on making this transition as easy as possible on our employees."

Last fall, Cox announced it would shut down the wireless business, ceasing sales in mid-November. The MSO has continued to provide service for its wireless customers, via a wholesale deal with Sprint Nextel, but that will end March 30, 2012. Cox said it was exiting the business because it lacked national scale and access to "iconic wireless devices" to be compete, and also cited growing competition from faster 4G networks.

Separately, Cox in December reached an agreement with Verizon Wireless to sell its 20-MHz Advanced Wireless Services spectrum licenses covering 28 million people in the U.S. for $315 million. All told, Cox in the last five years has spent more than $550 million on spectrum licenses in the last five years, paying $304.6 million for 700-MHz licenses in the FCC's digital TV spectrum auction in 2008 and $248.3 million for the AWS licenses in 2006.

That came after Comcast, Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks also struck deals to sell AWS licenses to the wireless carrier. Under that partnerships, the MSOs and Verizon Wireless have agreed to resell each other's products. Comcast and Verizon Wireless have already initiated co-marketing programs in San Francisco, Seattle and Portland, Ore.

The Verizon Wireless/MSO deals are subject to approval by the FCC and Department of Justice, and the Senate is planning to hold hearings on the proposed transactions.

Cox announced an ambitious plan in the fall of 2008 to deliver its own 3G, and to build its own wireless network in certain markets. In May 2011, Cox scrapped plans to build its own towers, announcing that it would instead rely solely on Sprint's 3G network.

Cox had launched wireless service in less than 50% of its footprint, including in: Hampton Roads, Roanoke and Northern Virginia; Orange County, San Diego and Santa Barbara, Calif.; Omaha, Nebraska; Oklahoma City and Tulsa, Okla.; and Rhode Island and Cox communities in Connecticut and Cleveland, Ohio.

The company previously said it will make special offers available to Cox Wireless customers to shift to another wireless provider.

Source: Multi Channel

Sanyo plans to layoff 140 employees in California

2012-02-04T07:42:00.001+05:30

Japanese solar company Sanyo plans to lay off about 140 employees in California, or about 40 percent of its manufacturing workforce in the United States, as it shifts its strategy in order to compete with large rivals, particularly those from China.

Sanyo is closing the 30-megawatt factory in Carson that makes silicon ingot and wafers – the materials for making solar cells – after setting up shop there in 2003. Production will stop at the end of March to coincide with the end of the company’s fiscal year, said Aaron Fowles, a Sanyo spokesman, on Friday. The company plans to liquidate the assets and close the factory for good in October.

The company has another, 70-megawatt ingot and wafer factory, located in Salem, Ore., and that factory will continue to operate, Fowles said.

The Carson factory has aging equipment that is making products that aren’t so in demand anymore, he said. And the cost of retrofitting it with new equipment is too high, especially when the company has to compete with the growing presence and influence of Chinese manufacturers, he added.

“The Carson plant has no room for expansion, and it will take a vast amount of investments to bring it up to speed,” Fowles said. “To be competitive, we can do it in Malaysia.”

The company, which is part of Panasonic, is buiding a large factory in Malaysia that will make wafers and turn them into solar cells and then panels. Panasonic plans to invest 45 billion yen (about $580 million) in the new factory. A fellow manufacturer in Japan, Sumco, announced Friday it would get out of the business of making silicon wafers all together.

The planned factory shutdown by Sanyo follows a series of layoffs and solar factory closures in the United States and elsewhere over the past year. Manufacturers have struggled to survive when there is a glut of solar panels and the wholesale prices for them have fallen by 40-50 percent. The glut is partly caused by the lowering of government subsidies in big solar markets such as Germany and Italy in 2011.

Earlier this month, California-based Amonix said it was letting go 200 of the roughly 300 workers at its North Las Vegas factory, which it opened last year with a promise to bring lots of local jobs. Amonix said it needed to cut staff so that it could modify the production equipment and start making a new line of solar energy systems later this year. Some workers there told the Las Vegas Sun that they didn’t know their employment would be so temporary.

Also earlier this month, Boston-based Satcon Technology, which makes power conversion equipment for solar electric systems, said it was laying off 35 percent of its workforce and shutting down a factory in Canada. Two German manufacturers who set up factories in the United States, SolarWorld and Solon, have shuttered some of the production here.

Several manufacturers who didn’t have enough money or unable to reduce their costs quick enough to stay in business have filed for bankruptcies, including Solyndra, SpectraWatt and Evergreen Solar.

Some manufacturers blame their Chinese rivals for the pileup of unused solar panels and the big drop in prices. SolarWorld, which runs a solar panel factory in Oregon, joined six other manufacturers in filing a trade complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Commerce last October. The companies contend that Chinese manufactures are selling their products at prices far below the cost of producing them, and they are able to do that because they receive heavy and unfair subsidies from the Chinese government.

But many project developers and installers see things differently. They have benefited from the lower prices, and they want to drive down the cost of producing solar electricity so that solar can better compete with power from coal and natural gas power plants.

Source: Forbes

Sun Pacific Farming Cooperative to cut 2,100 jobs

2012-02-04T07:41:00.001+05:30

More than 2,100 workers at the Sun Pacific Farming Cooperative facility in Bakersfield are scheduled to be permanently laid off in the second week of March, according to media reports.

Bakersfield.com, the Web version for The Bakersfield Californian newspaper, reported the company filed a notice on Jan. 12 required by the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act. The WARN Act is a federal law that requires certain employers to provide advance notice of large layoffs. California has a similar state law.

News of the layoffs broke Jan. 30, the day before Sun Pacific of Pasadena, Calif., announced it had hired a new president, Robert DiPiazza. Some Sun Pacific administrators were unavailable and calls to others were not immediately returned on Feb. 2-3.

The company’s chief financial officer, Toby Maitland-Lewis, was quoted by the Bakersfield newspaper as saying Sun Pacific views the situation as less of a layoff scenario and more of a case of workers changing employers.

Sun Pacific plans to use independent farm labor contractors to handle the jobs formerly done by the Sun Pacific workers.

The move is similar, but on a much larger scale, to a step taken recently by Tanimura & Antle in late January when officials at the Salinas, Calif.-based company announced it would lay off 67 employees and outsource harvest work at its Texas onion operation.

Source: The Packer

Verizon Communications layoffs 336 employees in New Jersey

2012-02-04T07:40:00.001+05:30

Verizon Communications will lay off 336 employees in New Jersey, installers who work in homes and businesses on traditional telephone lines, the company said on Friday.

The technicians are part of Verizon Connected Solutions, a Verizon subsidiary. The layoffs represent virtually all of the unit’s New Jersey employees. Twenty will remain, working out of an office in Plainfield, Verizon spokesman Lee J. Gierczynski said.

“They are getting closed down, totally laid off,” said Ed Cocliff, a business agent at Local 827 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers

The employees, who will lose their jobs over the next two months, work from offices in Freehold Township, Boonton, Ewing and Egg Harbor.

They install and maintain traditional telephone lines, which are made from copper, rather than the fiber-optic lines that are part of Verizon FiOS, a bundle of telephone, Internet and television products.

Verizon’s business is changing, Gierczynski said. The telecommunications giant continues to lose thousands of copper-based phone lines a month in New Jersey to fiber optic services and wireless carriers, he said.

“As Verizon’s been changing from a traditional copper-based telephone company to a wireless and broadband provider, the business has evolved,” the spokesman said. “There’s been a reduction in work associated with the traditional copper network. Our headcount is being adjusted to reflect those changing business trends.”

The IBEW’s Cocliff expressed outrage, noting Verizon’s profits. Last week, Verizon said its profit for 2011 was $2.4 billion.

“It’s ridiculous. It’s ridiculous,” Cocliff said. “I don’t know what games they are playing. They made enough money.”

The relationship between Verizon and its workers remains in turmoil. About 40,000 workers, represented by the IBEW and the Communications Workers of America, including a total 7,000 in New Jersey, went on strike last summer.

The issues included Verizon's move to freeze pensions and demand that workers contribute toward their health insurance premiums.

Both sides later called a truce, and their old contract was extended while negotiations continue.

Source: APP

American Airlines to cut more than 2,000 jobs in Tulsa

2012-02-03T08:12:00.001+05:30

A spokesman for American Airlines says Tulsa is expected to lose 2,100 jobs at its maintenance base under a bankruptcy reorganization plan released by its parent company.

American Airlines spokesman Tim Smith said Wednesday the company employs about 6,800 workers at its Tulsa facility, mostly mechanics who work to overhaul engines and equipment.

Fort Worth-based AMR Corporation filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November, and released a proposal Wednesday saying it planned to slash about 13,000 jobs, or 15 percent of its workforce. U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe and other state officials said they were disappointed, but not surprised by the airline's announcement.

They expressed optimism that the maintenance facility in Tulsa will remain operational. Smith says the plan released Wednesday is the starting point for union negotiations.

Source: Bartlesville Radio

Thirty-One Gifts layoffs 182 workers in Ohio

2012-02-03T08:10:00.004+05:30

Central Ohio-based direct-sales company Thirty-One Gifts has laid off 182 workers at two of its four area operations.

Company officials said that they were forced to lay off 92 employees at its Johnstown office and 90 employees at its Easton office because of lagging sales growth.

Thirty-One and its independent sales representatives sell purses, totes and other accessories via home parties.

Although sales “continue to beat last year’s numbers, it’s simply not at the pace that was expected for 2012,” the company said in a statement. The reduced number of employees will make Thirty-One better able to deal with the slower sales growth.

In addition, "Throughout 2011, we invested heavily in systems, improved infrastructure in our call center operations, warehouse, and order management systems and in the hiring of employees,” said Cindy Monroe, founder and CEO of the company.

“All of this led to great efficiencies,” she said, which meant that some employees wouldn’t be needed. “This was an extremely difficult decision as we value all our employees’ contributions to our success.”

In addition to the Johnstown and Easton facilities, Thirty-One has operations in Springfield and on Fisher Road.

Source: Dispatch

Manheim Remarketing plans to layoff 70 employees in Texas

2012-02-03T08:08:00.004+05:30

Manheim Remarketing Inc. dba Manheim San Antonio plans to lay off 70 employees, according to a letter the company sent to the Texas Workforce Commission.

The letter states that the company plans to assign its transportation function to a third-party vendor, which result in a workforce reduction.

The targeted date for the layoffs is Monday, March 27 and will likely be permanent.

Furthermore, the letter states that the affected employees — who have all been notified — will be provided health coverage and pay (where applicable) for a 60-day period. There will be no employee displacement or bumping of other employees in connection with the layoffs.

Manheim is a wholesale vehicle auction company. The company has 122 locations across the globe. Manheim is a subsidiary of Atlanta-based Cox Enterprises .

Manheim San Antonio is located at 2042 Ackerman Road. Manheim auctions off bank-repossessed vehicles and vehicles that are owned by car-rental companies.

Source: Biz Journals

Ryan International Airlines announces 200 layoffs

2012-02-03T08:06:00.004+05:30

Rockford-based Ryan International Airlines has announced it will lay off about 200 pilots, flight attendants and other workers.

The Rockford Register Star reports Thursday that the airline will make the cuts at four U.S. bases and said the reduction reflects less business coming from the U.S. Department of Defense. Much of the company's business has come from moving troops around the world. Ryan executive vice president Mark Robinson says there is "just less military flying." Robinson says the airline will restructure over the next six months to add more charter flights.

The airline employs 585 people. Those affected by the layoffs are based in Arizona, Florida, Louisiana and Rockford.

A spokeswoman for the Airline Pilots Association says the union was notified of the layoffs on Wednesday.

Source: Chicago Tribune