Mike: Good day to all. Today’s much anticipated news will likely revolve around earnings releases from Microsoft and Google, as well as the  Jobless Claims  numbers.  Yesterday, a few earnings reports were better than expected, as in the case of Apple, but the layoff announcements didn’t slow their brutal pace. If today’s earnings news and the  Jobless Claims  numbers improve, the outlook for jobs may also improve in the near term, or at least we can hope that’s the case.
Update: As the news indicats, the numbers were worse than expected for Microsoft, jobless clains and housing starts
* NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — The number of Americans filing for first-time unemployment benefits rose last week to a 26-year high, according to a government report released Thursday.

The Labor Department said that initial filings for state jobless benefits rose 62,000 to 589,000 for the week ended Jan. 17.

via Jobless claims surge to 26-year high – Jan. 22, 2009 .

 

 

Microsoft/Google/IBM/etc. News & Rumors

 

* Microsoft Earnings and Revenues Take a Big Hit; 5,000 to Be Laid Off (Plus the Full Press Release)

via Microsoft Earnings and Revenues Take a Big Hit; 5,000 to Be Laid Off (Plus the Full Press Release) | Kara Swisher | BoomTown | AllThingsD.

 

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more about “jobs cut – Google News“, posted with vodpod

 

 

* NEW YORK/BOSTON (Reuters) – Microsoft Corp is expected to post a quarterly profit that misses its own target and announce thousands of job cuts this week as the global economic slump hurts even the technology industry’s biggest players.

When the leading software maker reports fiscal second quarter results on Thursday, investors are likely to press for comments on its outlook and on Yahoo Inc, whose search business has been the object of Microsoft’s desires.

The report comes against a backdrop of a wounded global economy that has stifled demand for everything from personal computers to business software and video games, all markets in which Microsoft is a significant player.

via Microsoft expected to cut jobs as profit weakens – Boston.com.

 

* Jan. 22 (Bloomberg) — Microsoft Corp., reporting second- quarter earnings today, may announce its first companywide job cuts as the software maker trims costs amid slumping demand.

The company will probably cut full-time positions, contract workers and outside vendors, said Heather Bellini, an analyst at UBS AG in New York. Microsoft will probably slice 5 percent to 7 percent, or $1.37 billion to $1.92 billion, from annual operating expenses, she estimates.

via Bloomberg.com: News.

 

* With the PC market having tanked along with the rest of the market, Microsoft is seen as unlikely to be able to live up to the financial forecast it issued in October.

In a further sign of just how rough the economy is, Microsoft is also expected to announce shortly its plans for a significant, companywide layoffs. Although Microsoft has cut jobs in a particular unit or location in the past, it has managed to navigate through all past downturns without having to resort to such broad job cuts.

via PC sales slump to bite even Microsoft | Microsoft – CNET News.

 

Mike: That Vista was a problem for Microsoft is not surprising at all. They should have shelved it before it started and just tweaked XP:

Windows Vista has been trouble for Microsoft perhaps since the operating system’s beginning. And this last quarter was certainly no exception. Despite a dip in client software revenue, however, one analyst says the workforce reduction Microsoft detailed on Thursday is healthy — at least from enterprise IT shops’ perspective.

When Microsoft released its earnings report on Thursday, the company indicated not only that it would lay off up to 5,000 workers or 5 percent of its total headcount but also that software client revenue — as in Windows Vista — sank by 8 percent.

via Vista main culprit in Microsoft layoffs | InfoWorld | News | 2009-01-22 | By Tom Sullivan, InfoWorld .

 

* MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — After a decade of mostly feel-good stories, Internet search leader Google Inc. is expected to join in the economy’s tale of woe with its fourth-quarter earnings report and commentary about the state of the online ad market.

The results, due out after the stock market closes Thursday, will likely reflect the slowest growth since Google went public in 2004, and help explain why management has been pulling a variety of financial levers to boost profits.

via Ahead of the bell: Google 4Q growth likely to slow – washingtonpost.com.

 

* This should be put in the “rumor” file immediately because it is based on one anonymous source inside Yahoo!.

Yahoo!’s (YHOO) new CEO, Carol Bartz, has told her board that she does not need outside help from consultants to restructure the company. Previous CEO Jerry Yang had brought in Bain.

via 24/7 Wall St.: Rumor: Yahoo! (YHOO) Will Cut 3,000 Jobs Or $850 Million.

 

IBM JOB CUTS ARE HAPPENING in SWG and Sales and Distribution in the US and Canada 1/21/2009!

Comment 1/21/09: IBM Atlanta – Entire team has been RA’ed. after the usual announcement we made a good quarter blah blah. -Anonymous-

Comment 1/21/09: I am one of the chosen for the resource action -Anonymous-

Comment 1/21/09: Tivoli Software Developer Atlanta – End of life the TSOM product All but two employees were RA’d -anon-

via Job Cuts Comments.

 

* A day after releasing a record-setting earnings report, IBM began cutting jobs — up to 1,400 by some estimates.

The company confirmed generally that a job action was under way on Tuesday, but refused to provide details.

Employees did report that an unspecified number of layoffs happened on IBM’s Rochester campus, though IBM would not confirm or deny that.

via Postbulletin.com: Rochester, MN.

 

* The site details that IBM employees nationwide are anxiously waiting for the company to publicly announce the number of job cuts likely to take place in the United States and indeed, the discussion section of the site is buzzing with comments from people claiming to have been laid off.

via Rumors Rage Regarding IBM Layoffs – Tom’s Hardware.

 

* The Humboldt Redwood Co. is laying off about 30 workers and shutting its Scotia fencing operation for an indeterminate period.

via Layoffs at Humboldt Redwood announced – ContraCostaTimes.com.

 

* Sun Microsystems Inc. officials confirmed Thursday that the networking and storage company has notified 1,300 employees they would be laid off as part of a previously announced workforce reduction.

It was not immediately known how many people at Sun’s Broomfield campus — where 2,380 people work — might be affected. Spokeswoman Dana Lengkeek said the company is not providing a breakout by location.

via Sun notifies 1,300 people of layoffs : Local Business : Boulder Daily Camera.

 

General Economic News

 

  • Thursday –   Housing Starts – Housing starts measure initial construction of residential units (single-family and multi-family) each month. 

* Update: Jan. 22 (Bloomberg) — U.S. builders probably broke ground in December on the fewest houses since record-keeping began as sales and credit dried up, economists said before a government report today.

Housing starts fell 3.2 percent last month to an annual rate of 605,000, the lowest level since the Commerce Department started compiling data in 1959, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg News survey. Building permits, a sign of future projects, also probably dropped to a record low.

via Bloomberg.com: Worldwide.

 

  • Thursday –  Jobless Claims  – This is the week’s big job number. With the effect of the holiday shortened weeks behind, this number should better reflect current job losses. The consensus estimate is for job losses of 610,000.

* Update: Jan. 22 (Bloomberg) — The number of Americans filing first- time claims for unemployment benefits matched the highest level in 26 years as firings forced more workers to seek government assistance in a deepening recession.

Initial jobless claims increased by 62,000 to 589,000, more than forecast, in the week ended Jan. 17, from a revised 527,000 the prior week, a Labor Department report showed today in Washington.

via Bloomberg.com: Worldwide.

 

* NEW YORK (AP) — Disappointing results at Microsoft Corp. and increasing concerns about the nation’s banks sent Wall Street sharply lower Thursday, extending a new streak of stock volatility into a third day. The Dow Jones industrials fell more than 200 points.

Microsoft surprised investors by reporting its fiscal second-quarter earnings early — and the news was not good. The software giant posted an 11 percent drop in profits and said it will slash 5,000 jobs over the next 18 months.

via Wall Street tumbles on Microsoft report, bank woes – Yahoo! Finance.

 

* The steep decline in the stock market last year triggered an erosion of foundation wealth, with many grant makers losing nearly one-third of their assets, according to a new Chronicle survey of some of the nation’s largest philanthropies.

For the 57 grant makers that provided financial data for 2007 and 2008, endowments declined a median of 29 percent. (A table showing this data is available to Chronicle subscribers.)

Foundations with investments in bankrupt or hard-hit companies, of course, fared much worse. For example, the Starr Foundation, in New York, which held a significant portion of its portfolio in American International Group stock, lost $1.7-billion – almost 57 percent of its assets.

via Many Foundations Have Lost Almost One-Third of Their Assets, Chronicle Study Finds – Philanthropy.com.

 

* Wednesday marked the last day for most workers at Chrysler’s Mopar parts distribution center in Newark, according to union officials and workers.

The facility, which supplies parts to Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep dealers in the region, has been winding down operations since the closure last month of Chrysler’s assembly plant at the same site.

The plant’s closure, which came a year earlier than expected, resulted in the loss of more than 1,100 jobs. Chrysler also employed more than 100 at the Mopar facility, and workers there had the same options as those at the assembly plant: transfer to another Chrysler location, take a buyout package or retire.

via Mopar workers finish up in Newark | delawareonline | The News Journal.

 

* Jan. 22 (Bloomberg) — Japan’s exports plunged by a record in December, signaling companies will be forced to shut factory lines and fire more workers, driving the economy deeper into recession.

Exports plummeted 35 percent from a year earlier, the sharpest decline since 1980, the earliest year for which there is comparable data, the Finance Ministry said today in Tokyo. The December drop eclipsed a record 26.7 percent decline set the previous month. Economists predicted a 30.3 percent contraction.

via Bloomberg.com: Japan.

 

Mike: A couple days ago, National Economic Council director Lawrence Summers, said that the unemployment rate wouldn’t hit 10%.(Summers says does not see jobless topping 10 percent | Reuters )    Yet in Michigan it has already exceeded 10% and this is just the beginning of layoffs across a wide range of professions. While Michigan could be an exception to the Summers’s 10% top, it may also be a bellwether for the rest of the country. Let’s hoe that the new administration is a little more honest with the people it serves than the one that recently departed, but it’s not looking that way, yet.

Michigan’s unemployment rate hit double digits in December and rose to its highest level in a quarter century.

With employers shedding workers throughout the economy, the state’s December jobless rate jumped to 10.6% from November’s 9.6%, the state’s Department of Energy, Labor and Economic Growth said Wednesday.

via Michigan’s jobless rate hits 10.6% | Freep.com | Detroit Free Press.

 

* Nearly a year ago, Gov. Rick Perry trumpeted $90 million in savings to businesses by temporarily suspending some of the burden of paying unemployment insurance taxes — money meant to replenish the unemployment compensation trust fund.

The suspended tax was reinstated this month, but officials said it won’t be enough to bridge the gap between the $414 million the state expects to be in the fund Oct. 1 and the $861 million it’s supposed to have.

via Texas jobless fund likely to have $447 million shortfall | Houston & Texas News | Chron.com – Houston Chronicle.

 

* Faced with overwhelming financial losses during this economic crisis, more and more investors and financiers are committing suicide, now known as “econocide.” Bob Orr reports from Washington.

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Municipal News

 

* City Manager Greg Johnson said that a code enforcement officer and a senior accountant were laid off as part of budget reductions. A vacant position for an assistant planner remains frozen.

US and some Canada News –

 

* Amid speculation it may be close to reporting its first quarterly loss in 22 years, Santa Clara computer chip maker Intel Wednesday said it will lay off at least 5,000 employees — including an undetermined number in the Bay Area — and shut five manufacturing plants.

As part of a corporate-wide restructuring, the world biggest chip maker said it will cease plant operations in four locations — Santa Clara, Hillsboro, Ore., Penang, Malaysia and Cavite, Philippines.

via Intel to lay off 5,000, close five plants – San Jose Mercury News.

 

* ROSEAU, Minn. – Polaris Industries Inc. has cut production of its Ranger utility vehicle at its plant in Roseau and laid off more than 110 employees.

The maker of snowmobiles, ATVs and other leisure vehicles has been battered as the economy turned to recession and discretionary spending has tapered off.

via Polaris: More than 100 workers laid off.

 

* More than 50 people have been laid off at the Las Vegas Strip’s newest resort. Wynn Design and Development announced they are reducing the workforce at Encore from 129 to 76 employees.

via Las Vegas Now | Dozens Laid Off After Encore Opening.

 

* Almost three hundred people in Alberta are being laid off from steelmaker Evraz because of the slumping economy. About one hundred people are to be laid off at operations in Calgary, another seventy five are getting notice in Red Deer and one hundred and twenty will be out of work in Camrose.

via AM 770: News. Talk. Sports. – Local News .

 

* Colville Tribal Enterprise laid off 230 workers Friday from the mill that is one of Omak’s largest employers. CEO Troy Johnson says he hopes prices will rise in the spring.

The tribe’s lumber mill, Precision Pine, continues to operate with more than 120 employees.

via KPQ -Wenatchee – Omak mill closes.

 

* This is a list of 2009 Orange County layoffs. It is based on official notices filed with the state Employment Development Department, public announcements by companies and independent reporting by the Orange County Register.

via Orange County layoffs | county, orange – Money – OCRegister.com.

 

* Layoffs in the Canadian legal community are picking up steam with the announcement yesterday that Toronto-based Cassels, Brock & Blackwell let 38 support staff go, about 7% of its total workforce.

via Cassels Brock cuts staff – FP Legal Post .

 

* NEW YORK (AP) — Phillips-Van Heusen Corp., which owns the Calvin Klein, Izod and Van Heusen clothing brands, said Wednesday it will close 175 stores and lay off 400 employees due to the recession.

via The Associated Press: Phillips-Van Heusen lays off 400, shuts 175 stores.

 

* Electrolux will close its Webster City vacuum plant later this year and move roughly 85 jobs to plants in Juarez, Mexico, and El Paso, Texas, the company announced Wednesday.

via Electrolux to cut Webster City plant, 85 jobs | DesMoinesRegister.com | The Des Moines Register.

 

* Dana Corp. has laid off 60 of its hourly and salaried employees from its manufacturing plant in Humboldt.

The reductions leave a total of 225 workers at the plant, which manufactures axles for medium- and heavy-duty trucks.

via Dana Corp. lays off 60 in Humboldt | jacksonsun.com | .

 

* REGINA — Steel maker Evraz Group SA confirmed Wednesday that it has issued layoff notices to about 400 employees across Western Canada because of the slumping economy.

via –Evraz cuts 400 jobs in Western Canada

 

* Patriot Coal Corp (PCX.N) said it will idle its Remington and Black Oak mines and scale down activity at it Rocklick facility, resulting in about 400 job cuts. The US coal producer said its Remington complex mine produced 1 million tons of thermal coal in 2008, but lower mining recovery had resulted in a higher cost structure.

via UPDATE 1-Patriot Coal to close some mines, cut 400 jobs | Industries | Energy | Reuters .

 

* A big employer in our area cuts jobs again, announcing the closing of 2 more local plants on Wednesday. This time, Tyco Electronics is closing the Carlisle location in Cumberland County and the Emigsville plant in York County by the end of March.

A spokesperson for the company, Mike Ratcliff, tells CBS 21 News that 25-hundred jobs will be cut worldwide, but he won’t say how many people in our area will be out of a job. Ratcliff says the demand for the company’s products have dropped 16-to-19 percent over the last year.

via Tyco to Close 2 More Plants – CBS 21 .

 

* Woodcraft Industries Inc. in St. Cloud is the latest employer to cut employees from its staff, although it is giving little information about how many people it let go.

via Woodcraft cuts jobs, doesn’t say how many | sctimes.com | St. Cloud Times.

 

* Pineville, LA (AP) – International Paper’s Pineville Mill is temporarily laying off 180 employees. Company officials say that the Mill’s number five paper machine will go through a six-week downtime, beginning January 24th.

via KSLA News 12 Shreveport, Louisiana |More Layoffs for Pineville paper mill.

 

* Twenty-seven employees of WASHEX, a manufacturing plant that has been in Wichita Falls since 1973, were laid off Monday, according to President Bob Montgomery.

“It’s the economy. We hope to build our backlog back up and that it is a temporary situation. If the economy turns around, and we see orders, we would try to hire them back,” Montgomery said.

via Plant cites economy, slumping orders for decision : Local : Times Record News.

 

* Dana Corp. has laid off 60 of its hourly and salaried employees from its manufacturing plant in Humboldt.

The reductions leave a total of 225 workers at the plant that manufactures axles for medium- and heavy-duty trucks.

via Dana Corp. lays off 60 from plant in Humboldt | jacksonsun.com | .

 

* The Holden Arboretum will lay off more than a dozen employees to cut costs because of a sharp reduction in its endowment.

via Holden Arboretum to lay off 13 workers as endowment investments suffer – Cleveland.com.

 

* Three-dozen Jeld-Wen employees in Bend got the word Wednesday they won’t have scheduled hours for an undetermined amount of time.

via KTVZ.com Central Oregons News, Weather and Sports Leader – Jeld-Wen laying off 51 Bend workers.

 

* US firm Cooley Godward Kronish has axed 52 lawyers and 62 staff, reports The Recorder. 

The 725-lawyer firm has laid off associates, including some who had just started at the firm in the autumn, and three special counsel. The practice areas most affected by the layoffs are among those being hardest hit in the economic downturn – corporate, transactional and public securities.

via Cooley lays off 114 as cutbacks continue – Legal Week, legal news, comment, events and legal jobs.

 

* Eight people were laid off from Madison’s Clear Channel radio stations Tuesday, according to sources close to the matter.

via news: Clear Channel lays off 8 in Madison.

 

* Children’s Place Retail Stores Inc (PLCE.O) said it will cut about 350 jobs as it relocates its e-commerce business, citing lack of space at its present center.

via UPDATE 1-Children’s Place to relocate e-commerce biz, cut jobs | Markets | Markets News | Reuters .

 

* F5 Networks would cut 5 percent to 7 percent of its workforce at the end of the second quarter as part of its restructuring plan, resulting in charges of $4.5 million to $5.5 million, a company executive said in a conference call with analysts.

via UPDATE 2-F5 Networks Q1 profit up, Q2 outlook solid; to cut jobs | Industries | Autos & Transport | Reuters .

 

* BETHLEHEM | FLSmidth Inc. plans to trim its global work force by 600 workers across three locations, including local operations, in response to the economic downturn.

The exact number of local employees to be affected was not immediately clear.

CEO Christian Jepsen said Wednesday the company is identifying which positions to cut and expects to know more details by Jan. 30.

via FLSmidth Inc. to cut 600 jobs worldwide – lehighvalleylive.com.

 

* Comerica Inc (CMA.N), a large U.S. regional bank, on Thursday said it barely broke even in the fourth quarter, plans to cut 5 percent of its workforce by the end of March and will freeze salaries for higher-paid employees.

via UPDATE 1-Comerica barely breaks even, cutting jobs | Markets | Bonds News | Reuters .

 

* Bolivar — Eighty workers at the Tracker Marine plant in Bolivar will be out of work by March with the company’s decision to consolidate boat-building at its Lebanon plant, Tracker officials said.

via Tracker Marine closing plant in Bolivar | News-Leader.com | Springfield News-Leader.

 

* Harry & David’s retail store at the Bend Factory Outlets will shut by the end of next month, as the Medford-based fruit and gift basket seller has decided not to renew its lease, officials said Wednesday.

via KTVZ.com Central Oregons News, Weather and Sports Leader – Harry & David closing Bend Factory Stores outlet.

 

* NEW YORK (Reuters) – Microsoft shocked Wall Street on Thursday with disappointing results and said it would slash up to 5,000 jobs and stop offering profit forecasts for the rest of the fiscal year.

The world’s top software maker blamed the weakness of the PC market and the popularity of low-cost netbook computers for the miss. Its shares fell 8 percent in early trading.

via Microsoft to cut up to 5,000 jobs | Technology | Reuters .

 

* NEW YORK (AP) — Chemicals maker Huntsman said Thursday it will cut 1,175 jobs, close a plant in the United Kingdom and cut capital spending to slash costs as demand for its products falls amid the recession.

The job cuts, which represent more than 9 percent of its work force, are expected before the end of the year.

via The Associated Press: Huntsman to cut 1,175 jobs, close UK plant.

 

* Eaton Corp., the Cleveland-based maker of circuit breakers and fuel pumps, plans to slash 5,200 more jobs worldwide amid weak demand after already shedding 3,400 workers last year.

The two rounds of reductions represent about 10 percent of the workforce, and the company began notifying employees yesterday, spokeswoman Kelly Jasko said in a phone interview.

via Bloomberg.com: Worldwide.

 

* Update: Williams-Sonoma Inc.’s plan to cut 1,400 jobs is necessary to achieve long-term visibility and shows just how much the home furnishing sector is suffering, an analyst said Thursday.

Late Wednesday, the San Francisco company said it planned to cut the jobs by the end of the month and close a call center and a distribution center in an effort to save an estimated $75 million.

via Ahead of the Bell: Williams-Sonoma cuts jobs – Forbes.com.

 

* Jones Apparel Group Inc. announced today that it is looking for annualized cost savings of $33 million as it sheds jobs and makes other belt-tightening moves.

New York-based Jones Apparel, which has some financial offices in Bristol, Bucks County, also said it would be recommending a cut in the quarterly dividend from 14 cents to 5 cents a share, and cutting 2009 capital spending to $45 million, from about $70 million last year.

via Jones Apparel to cut jobs, trim dividend | Philadelphia Inquirer | 01/22/2009.

 

* YPSILANTI, Mich. (AP) — A Washtenaw County-based air freight and maintenance company says more work force reductions are planned.

WJRT-TV reports Kalitta Air LLC of Ypsilanti will cut an undisclosed number of positions and most will be contract employees. The cuts come on top of the roughly 200 jobs that were cut in December and will be made by month’s end.

via – Michigan air freight company plans more layoffs

 

* Comerica Inc. said this morning it plans to eliminate 570 jobs or 5% of its workforce in the first quarter and freeze the salaries of its top 20% of employees this year.

 

Though the job cuts are spread across the regional bank’s operations, many of them are expected to occur in Michigan, which has about 7,000 of Comerica’s slightly more than 10,000 workers.

via Comerica to cut workforce by 5% | Freep.com | Detroit Free Press.

 

* Barnes & Noble’s elimination of about 100 jobs at its corporate headquarters last week reportedly were due to “the reduction in store openings and consolidation of functional areas within the retail and online operations.” However, the cuts apparently have also spread to the company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Sterling Publishing. An estimated 15 people have been cut from Sterling’s New York office.

via Authorlink.com: News Item Barnes & Noble-Job Cuts Extend-To Sterling Publishing.

 

* Digg CEO Jay Adelson this morning is announcing that the social media site is laying off a “very small” portion of its workforce, but will also be hiring a new direct sales force and head of sales to drive the company to profitablity this year.

The overall job cuts at the 75-person company will be “microscopic in size,” Adelson said to me, later confirming a figure of “about 10%.” He reiterated that Digg this year is focusing on profitability and growth, and for the first time is building out its own advertising support structure, “which we’ve never really focused on before.”

via Digg announces 10% layoffs, still aiming for profitability this year | Webware – CNET.

 

* EDMONTON – Suncor’s decision to slash capital spending will cut into as much as $185 million in revenues from two Alberta-based companies.

Flint Energy Services Ltd. said Thursday it will immediately begin laying off construction workers as the company responds to an expected loss of $100 million to $150 million in revenues this year compared to 2008.

via Suncor spending cuts lead to oilsands layoffs .

 

* HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (AP) — A manufacturer of customized rubber and plastic products has laid off 16 workers, citing the industrywide downturn as a result of the economy.

via 16 laid off at Rubberlite – The Herald Dispatch.

 

* O’Reilly Media, the technology company and Internet advocate, laid off 30 employees last week in an effort to restructure the Sebastopol-based tech publisher.

Company spokeswoman Sara Winge told the media that “We’re being hit by the economic malaise.”

via Authorlink.com: News Item O’Reilly Media-Lays Off 14%-Of Workers.

 

* ST. MARYS, Ohio — Auto supplier AAP St. Marys Corp. says it plans to lay off about 100 of its 475 workers next week.

via Ohio Auto Supplier To Lay Off 100 Workers – Automotive News Story – WEWS Cleveland.

 

* MASON CITY, Iowa — The Globe Gazette in Mason City has laid off nine full-time employees and will leave six open full- and part-time positions unfilled.

via Mason City Newspaper Cuts 15 Positions – Des Moines News Story – KCCI Des Moines.

 

* Layoffs announced by the parent company of EA Tiburon in December will be felt at the Maitland studio, according to Gamasutra, an online video game industry news and employment site.

EA officials would not comment on the layoff reports by Gamasutra.

The Web site reported “multiple staffers” have been let go at the Maitland studios, the primary home of the company’s EA Sports which produces Madden NFL, NBA Live, NCAA Football, Tiger Woods PGA Tour, NHL Hockey and NASCAR franchises.

via Online site: Layoffs at EA Tiburon – Orlando Business Journal: .

 

* San Diego-based Akesis Pharmaceuticals is calling it quits, opting to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy after anlayzing data from its sole remaining development program.

via Akesis shutters program, files for Chapter 7 – FierceBiotech.

 

* Akron, Ohio–The recessionary economy has forced Sterling Jewelers Inc. to layoff 114 employees at its home office in Akron, Ohio, the company announced on Wednesday.

via Sales slowdown forces Sterling layoffs.

 

* The U.S. recession struck the Browns this week with 15 employees laid off, 12 receiving the news Wednesday and three Tuesday.

Economic woes were given as the reason for the layoffs, which were not performance-related. One person was let go from each of the front-office support staff departments, including the team’s legal counsel, the director of youth development, the media information director, the events and special projects manager and a staff writer for the team’s Web site.

via Ohio.com – Team blames economy for layoffs of 15 staffers .

 

* The Spartan Light Metal Products production facility in Sparta recently conducted a series of lay-offs. Actually, an extensive series of lay-offs that started in November that have gradually picked up speed.

The current action taken by Spartan Light Metal Products  has displaced approximately 170 employees at the Sparta facility.

via Spartan Light Metals lay-off 170, more possible – Chester, IL – Randolph County Herald Tribune.

 

* WAUTOMA – Cummins, Inc. announced Thursday that it will close its Wautoma plant by the end of March.

187 people will be laid off as a result of the closure. The plant makes emission control devices for the company’s diesel engines.

via Cummins closing Wautoma plant.

 

* Citing the uncertain economy, Cooley Godward Kronish LLP laid off 52 attorneys in a further sign of economic distress buffeting law firms.

via Cooley Godward lays off 114 people – Triangle Business Journal: .

 

* Circuit City Stores Inc. will eliminate as many as 1,903 positions reporting to its corporate headquarters when the retailer closes its doors for good.

About 1,500 to 1,600 of those jobs are in the Richmond area, a company spokesman said today.

via Up to 1,903 Circuit City jobs to be eliminated | Richmond Times-Dispatch.

 

* Liberty Mutual Group announces it will eliminate the Wausau brand, Thursday morning.

The company announced today that it will drop the Wausau Insurance brand, and will restructure some of it’s staffing within the Wausau offices.  Some people may lose their jobs, others have a chance to re-apply in other positions.

According to employees, they were given eight weeks notice before changes will be made.

via WAOW – Newsline 9, Wausau News, Weather & Sports – WAOW.com -Liberty Mutual Group to eliminate Wausau Insurance brand.

 

* Nokia’s (NOK) fourth-quarter results saw a steep 69% drop in net profit on the back of declining sales.

The European tech bellwether now sees industry mobile device volumes down by 10% this year. Earlier, Nokia had projected a 5% decline.

The cell phone manufacturer also reduced its dividend and stated that it will eliminate nearly 1,000 positions as part of its cost-cutting measures.

via NOK Sees Steep Fall in 4Q Profit .

* Indianapolis-based Ice Miller is eliminating about 2 percent of its staff positions. Firm spokeswoman Joy Fischer told Indiana Lawyer that the cuts will eliminate 14 positions from a variety of support areas. However, the firm is not cutting attorney positions. She could not be reached for further comment on Tuesday.

via Law.com – Ice Miller Latest Law Firm to Cut Staff Positions .

 

* To meet state budget restrictions, Kansas University will eliminate 11 currently filled jobs and not fill 110 open positions on its Lawrence campus.

via LJWorld.com / KU eliminating 11 jobs and not filling 110 open positions.

 

* Interstate Hotels & Resorts has laid off 45 of its corporate employees as part of a cost-saving program.

The Arlington-based hotel real estate investor and management company (NYSE:IHR) said most of the cuts were made at its headquarters, which previously employed 225 people.

via Interstate Hotels & Resorts lays off 45 – Washington Business Journal: .

 

* Citing a drop in demand for its tires, Bridgestone Americas Inc. said today it plans to lay off about 644 more employees at its La Vergne manufacturing plant starting in mid-March.

About 385 of the cuts are related to the company permanently ceasing production of tires for cars, pickups and SUVs. Another 259 workers who make tires for commercial trucks and buses also will be temporarily laid off and could be called back in the future.

via Bridgestone cutting 644 jobs in La Vergne | www.tennessean.com | The Tennessean.

 

* Despite having just posted a solid year of sales and operating profits, East Hartford-based Pratt & Whitney plans to cut 150 hourly workers from its payrolls through buyouts and layoffs by Monday, company and union officials said today.

via Pratt cutting 150 hourly workers, 100 in CT | Hartford Business.

 

* EA Lays off Hundreds at Black Box Today

By Brian Crecente, 1:00 PM on Thu Jan 22 2009, 5,992 views

Electronic Arts today laid off as many as 150 to 200 people today as part of the company’s ongoing cut backs announced back in December, sources tell Kotaku.

These latest rumors come on the heels of word that there was a company-wide meeting today held at EA Canada to discuss the current state of the industry and the future of the company.

via Disturbance In The Workforce: EA Lays off Hundreds at Black Box Today.

 

* Angus-Palm Industries, which has two local manufacturing plants, has placed most of its workers on a four-day week in reaction to the nation’s recession, according to Jay Roths, the company’s general manager here.

He said that Angus-Palm also has laid off about 20 percent — or about 84 workers — from among the 420 personnel it employed here last summer, leaving it with about 336 employees.

via The Greeneville Sun – News Story – Angus-Palm Lays Off 20% Of Workers, Goes To 4-Day Week.

 

* Oregon Health & Science University will eliminate up to 8 percent of its 12,400 jobs as it comes to grips with a funding gap estimated between $30 million and $35 million.

OHSU President Joe Robertson told staff on thursday that the financial situation will result in the loss of at least 500 jobs and as many as 1,000.

via OHSU may cut 1,000 jobs – Portland Business Journal: .

 

* Fuel prices caused the parent company of United Airlines to lose $5.35 billion in 2008, and the airline will cut 1,000 additional jobs by the end of 2009.

via United Airlines parent loses $5B, will cut 1,000 jobs – Wichita Business Journal: .

 

* DETROIT (AP) — The worsening U.S. auto sales slump claimed another 2,000 workers Friday as General Motors Corp. announced layoffs at three more car factories.

The company said it will cut shifts at car factories in Lordstown, Ohio; Orion Township, Mich.; and Oshawa, Ontario, starting in February due to slowing demand for their products.

via GM to lay off 2,000 more workers at 3 factories – Yahoo! Finance.

 


International News

 

* MANILA (AFP) — Up to 60,000 jobs could be lost in the Philippines’ key electronics sector after Intel Corp. shut a facility and Texas Instruments announced a number of lay-offs, an official said Thursday.

Intel, the world’s biggest computer chip maker, announced plans Wednesday to close plants in Malaysia, the Philippines and the United States, with the loss of 1,800 jobs in its assembly test facility in Cavite province south of Manila.

via AFP: Philippines fears 60,000 IT job losses after Intel shutdown.

 

* Australia largest industrial property investment trust, Goodman Group Ltd, has reported that it will cut up to 175 jobs, around 16.5 per cent of its headcount, as part of plans to target a 20 per cent reduction in overheads on an annualised basis.

via Business Spectator – Goodman Group to cut up to 175 jobs.

 

* As many as 500 jobs could go at London Metropolitan University as the university faces a clawback of more than £50 million of funding – according to the lecturers’ trade union.

via Times Higher Education – London Met may cut 500 jobs, UCU claims.

 

* Jan. 22 (Bloomberg) — UBS AG, Switzerland’s largest bank, is planning a fourth round of job cuts at its securities division to shrink the fixed-income unit after record losses from the global financial crisis.

The Zurich-based bank will exit its real estate and securitization and exotic structured products businesses, Carsten Kengeter and Jeff Mayer, co-heads of fixed income, currencies and commodities, said in a memo dated Jan. 21.

via Bloomberg.com: Worldwide.

 

* Sony said Thursday it plans to cut another 1,000 temporary workers in Japan and close one of two domestic TV plants.

Sony also will offer early retirement packages to its regular, full-time workers in an effort to cut 30 percent of its personnel costs in its TV business by March 2010. It refused to give a head count but said they are part of the 8,000 job cuts announced earlier.

via Sony forecasts first annual net loss in 14 years – Yahoo! Finance.

 

* OC Oerlikon Corp., the world’s biggest maker of spinning machines, is eliminating more than 2,000 jobs, adding temporary workers to a job-cut program designed to counter a textile and automotive slowdown.

Oerlikon began cutting more than 1,000 jobs last year. Most of the total reduction will be completed by the end of the first quarter, spokesman Burkhard Boendel said today in an interview. More details will be provided soon, he said.

via Bloomberg.com: Europe.

 

* The Home Delivery Network (HDNL) is planning to slash nearly 700 jobs across its business as it looks to cut costs and make efficiency savings.

via Home Delivery Network to cut almost 700 jobs – 22/01/2009 – RoadTransport.com.

 

^ Amsterdam — TomTom will cut 115 jobs, reducing its global workforce by seven percent, excluding Tele Atlas, as a result of the current economy.

The job cuts are part of a “cost cutting program aimed at aligning its cost structure to reflect to the current challenging consumer spending environment,” TomTom said in a statement.

via TomTom Cuts Jobs – 1/22/2009 9:18:00 AM – TWICE.

 

Hiring News

 

* A motorsports engine product manufacturer will add 55 new jobs at its Aberdeen plant after closing a facility in Tijuana, Mexico.

Gov. Haley Barbour and state and local officials gathered Wednesday to announce the new jobs at the Holley Performance Products plant. The Aberdeen facility and the Mexico plant both made Flow Tech Headers and the company decided to consolidate production.

via WREG-TV Memphis – Holley Performance to add 55 new jobs in Aberdeen.

 

* Syracuse, New York (WSYR-TV) – While many places are cutting back, the U.S. Census is adding on, looking to hire 700 people here in central New York — and the starting pay is good, at more than $12 an hour.

Needless to say, the positions are filling up fast.

via Local U.S. Census Bureau hiring; positions filling fast – NewsChannel 9 WSYR .

 

* Tampa-based HomeBanc (www.homebanc.com) and its parent company HomeBancorp, Inc., which has plans to hire 15-25 new employees to help process and underwrite the strong volume of mortgage applications expected in the months ahead. The new hires will double the size of HomeBanc’s residential mortgage staff.

 

Mike: A dramatic day for job loss announcements that started with Microsoft and its 5000 layoffs and ending with UAL and 1000 less jobs. The unemployment numbers came in worse than expected at 589,000 claims and housing starts are at record lows. Needless for me to say, it was a bad day all around in the economic department. I don’t thin tomorrow will be able to match today’s brutal layoff numbers, at least I hope not. 

It will be vital that the Obama administration try to stop the job loss bleeding by at minimum lengthening the eligible weeks that those laid off can collect benefits and to make those benefits tax free. Another suggestion is to allow benefits to those that performed contract work  and part-time workers. Once the economy gets back on its feet, those changes can be  reversed, but it’s imperative that unemployment benefits allow those who lost jobs through no fault of their own to at least know that have a small check coming in each week. Some will argue that it becomes more of a welfare benefit than a true unemployment benefit, I would say that these are unprecedented times and that deserves unprecedented responses. If the big dogs at the big banks can continue to draw unworldly salaries at the taxpayer expense, even after driving their companies and the world economy into the ground, the laid off worker should be able to get through these difficult and troubling times with a small sense of security. Oh, and then make sue the culprits of this economic crime are brought to justice, but that’s a rant for later.

I wish you all a good evening and till tomorrow, I’ll end with a laugh or two………

 

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Mike Luckovich - Jan 22

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