Mike: A relatively quiet day again for layoff announcements of the larger kind. Hopefully this latest week is not merely a lull in the action. I’m going out this weekend to test my new Canon camera, so if I shoot anything of interest, I’ll post for comment. I hope you all have a fine weekend.
Yesterday’s jobless claims number was a positive sign in a lengthy period of negative reports. With stimulus money being spent and sent to states for large projects, the worst of the job losses may be coming to a close. There are a number of indicators that suggest when the four-week jobless claims moving average starts to decline, the recession hits bottom within a couple months. Keep your fingers crossed that the four-week claims continue to decline. While there are still many economic obstacles in the path to economic growth, these signs of improvement are encouraging. The following article shows the relationship between peak unemployment and economic recovery:

He points to one indicator in particular with a remarkable track record: the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits. In past recessions, it has hit its peak about four weeks before the economy hit a trough and began to grow again. As of right now, the four-week average of new claims hit its peak of 650,000 in the week ended March 14. Based on the model, “if there’s no further rise, we’re looking at a trough coming in April or May,” he said, which is far earlier than most forecasts currently anticipate.

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via RGE – Initial unemployment claims and the end of recessions.

 

New Claims for Unemployment - (4-week averages)

New Claims for Unemployment - (4-week averages)

Onto the news:

Mike: The US imprisons more people per capita than any other country in the world and the prison population isn’t even considered when tabulating unemployment. Why not save the taxpayer a bunch of money and give some model prisoners the ability to do some work? We give tax cheats and dishonest bankers great government gigs, so why not give some petty criminals a mop? What are your thoughts?

– COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Ohio wants to use prisoners to replace Statehouse janitors and groundskeepers who were laid off because of budget cuts, angering a labor union.

The state board that operates the building says it will probably use two inmates to do grounds work and another five for night cleaning.

via The Associated Press: Ohio to give prisoners laid-off janitors’ jobs.

– As of year-end 2007, a record 7.2 million people were behind bars, on probation or on parole. Of the total, 2.3 million were incarcerated.[7] More than 1 in 100 American adults were incarcerated at the start of 2008.

* Larger layoff announcements and important economic reports:
US/Canada

International:

               

Microsoft/Google/IBM and other Rumors & News

– HP extended its lead in the worldwide PC market while Dell slipped a few points and Acer gained a few others to finish the quarter in a virtual tie for the number two spot. The U.S. market in particular held up better than others, with shipments dipping somewhere between 0.3 and 3.1 percent depending on who you ask. But while the worldwide ranking stayed unchanged from last year, Dell’s shipments dropped precipitously in the United States, which cost them the number one spot in the country after a 10-year run as the top shipper of PCs.

General Economic News

 

Consumer Sentiment
[Report][djStar]
9:55 AM ET

– The Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers said its preliminary April reading of consumer sentiment rose to a level of 61.9, up from 57.3 in March and was the highest since 70.3 recorded in September.

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Consumers would receive vouchers worth as much as $5,000 for trading in models from 2001 or earlier for a new vehicle, under the legislation Sutton proposed March 17. The program may spur sales by more than the 21 percent increase witnessed in Germany in February, Sutton has said.

via U.S. ‘Cash-For-Clunkers’ Proposal May Cover Cars From Overseas – Bloomberg.com .

 

Mike: The crooks and tax dodgers that have been part of the initial Obama administration is staggering. I’m sure there are a few honest, ethical and trustworthy individuals running his economic teams, but the people who show a complete lack of those positive traits seem to increase in number on a regular basis.

– NEW YORK (AP) — An investment company run by the head of the Obama administration’s auto task force has been accused of paying more than $1 million to an aide to New York’s former comptroller in a bid to win a lucrative deal with the state pension fund.

via Obama’s auto adviser linked to NY pension probe – Yahoo! Finance.

 

– ATLANTA (AP) — Delta Air Lines Inc. no longer is outsourcing reservation calls to India after years of complaints from customers who preferred to speak to someone in the United States.

Stuart Carlson - Apr 17

Stuart Carlson - Apr 17

– But now a study highlights another area where workers laid off from companies with fewer than 20 workers get pinched: The 65 percent government COBRA subsidy to help people extend their health insurance is either not available to them or not as comprehensive in many states.

via Can You Count on a COBRA Subsidy? Maybe Not – On Health and Money (usnews.com).

 

calif– SAN FRANCISCO — The state unemployment rate soared to 11.2 percent in March, the highest since before World War II, leaving a record 2.1 million Californians out of work, according to a report issued Friday.

via State unemployment rate highest since 1941.

 

Mike: I would bet that the reason the unemployment rate declined in D.C. and slowed nearby is because that’s where the stimulus funding has its roots. Lobbyists, businesses, marketers, government, and others need to hire to get their hands on and handout those taxpayer fruits. It’s like people coming to town, which increases jobs, during harvest time. Locusts also came to mind briefly, but that’s for another post…….:)

– The District’s unemployment rate, which soared in recent months and was on the verge of reaching 10 percent, made an unexpected turn in March by dropping to 9.8 percent from 9.9 percent in February. Across the country, unemployment rose in all but four states and fell only in North Dakota and the District.

via Unemployment Falls Fraction in District; Maryland, Virginia Uptick Slows – washingtonpost.com.

 

– Durango School District 9-R notified 19 employees Friday that their jobs are expected to be eliminated next school year.

 

Government Layoff News

 

– The Finkbeiner administration plans to issue layoff notices to as many as 350 (Toledo) city employees today or Monday to stave off a rising 2009 city deficit, according to Bob Reinbolt, the mayor’s chief of staff.

 

– Fifty jobs will be lost after the state Department of Corrections announced the October closing of the annex portion of the Lakeview Shock Incarceration Correctional Facility, a minimum security prison in Brocton.

via 50 JOBS TO BE CUT – ObserverToday.com | News, Sports, Jobs, Community Information – Dunkirk | The Observer.

 

– The President of Plattsburgh State University says job cuts are coming.

via WCAX.COM Local Vermont News, Weather and Sports-Job Cuts Coming to Plattsburgh State.

 

– BROCKTON – City firefighters have given up $150,000 in overtime pay to save 20 jobs.

via Brockton firefighters give up overtime to save jobs – Brockton, MA – Wicked Local Brockton.

 

– More than a dozen city employees lost their jobs this morning as North Port continues to adjust to the recession. City Manager Steve Crowell announced 24 job cuts this morning, 14 in jobs that are occupied and 10 unfilled positions.

via City of North Port cuts 24 jobs | HeraldTribune.com | Sarasota Florida | Southwest Florida’s Information Leader.

 

– The new 32-hour work week begins Monday. It affects 84 employees in 11 departments,

via Mansfield moving to 32-hour work week | mansfieldnewsjournal.com | Mansfield News Journal.

 

– About 30 city of Seattle employees will get layoff notices today as part of $13.3 million in budget cuts the mayor announced this morning.

 

US and some Canada Layoff News

 

teradyne– Teradyne Inc. will eliminate 350 jobs and further reduce its executives’ annual salaries as part of ongoing plans to lower expenses as demand for chip making equipment continues to decline, the chip testing equipment maker said in a regulatory filing.

nxp-semiconductors– And with that, 622 jobs are set to expire between June 24 and July 8, according to a plant-closing notice the company filed with the state Department of Labor on Monday.

via Microchip maker sets shutdown date | PoughkeepsieJournal.com | Poughkeepsie Journal.

 

newspaper14tv2– The Richmond, Va., company also said it cut its work force by nearly 300 jobs in the week of March 31 and plans to freeze its pension plan at the end of May.

anheuser-busch– MOUNT VERNON, Ill. – Anheuser-Busch says it will close its facility in southern Illinois later this year, costing about 80 jobs.

– CARNEYS POINT TWP. – Feeling the pinch of the tough economic times, the Salem Community College Board of Trustees has approved the elimination of seven positions and reworked over a dozen others in order to close a budget shortfall.

via Seven jobs cut at SCC – NJ.com.

 

– LEWISBURG — A weakened global and domestic economy has forced a Lewisburg recreational equipment manufacturer to lay off 38 employees.

via The Daily Item, Sunbury, PA – 38 lose jobs at Playworld.

 

newspaper13– NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Times is cutting sections and trimming its budget for freelance contributions in another round of belt tightening aimed at coping with a steep decline in ad revenue.

via The Associated Press: New York Times to cut sections, freelance budget.

 

-Country Fresh management told TV5 the closing is due to economic conditions, excess product and the need to shift production.

The facility has 180 employees, but 110 jobs will be directly affected.

via Country Fresh Dairy Plant In Flint To Close – News Story – WNEM Saginaw.

 

– The move will affect 79 workers, according to data submitted to the state.

via Shelbyville factory to close – Business – Kentucky.com.

 

– Vale Inco employs about 5,000 workers in Ontario mostly at the two operations. It also has a major presence in northern Manitoba and in Labrador, where it operates the Voisey’s Bay mine.

via Inco closing for eight weeks – The North Bay Nugget – Ontario, CA .

 

– Workers at the Clarksville plant lost their jobs, some of whom had worked here since the plant opened in 1967. Mac Betts has put in 35 years of his life working here. Now he doesn’t know what to do.

via Holcim closed, community faces uncertainty : News : KHQA .

 

dhl– DHL Express’ decision to reactivate its Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky (CVG) facility will mean the movement of about 180 full-time positions and 650 part-time positions from Wilmington to the Northern Kentucky airport, a DHL spokesman said this morning, April 17.

via DHL decision means loss of 830 jobs total.

 

– The Suncadia resort near Cle Elum laid off 40 employees Wednesday, according to the Ellensburg Daily Record.

via Business & Technology | Suncadia lays off 40 employees | Seattle Times Newspaper.

 

abx-air– More than 500 ABX Air employees are getting laid off in the latest round of job losses announced Thursday.

via ABX to lay off 518.

 

chrysler– UAW Local 122 president Doug Rice said 450 to 500 employees will be laid off starting April 20. Rice said those laid off include assembly plant and maintenance workers as well as skilled trades workers.

via Twinsburgbulletin.com – Twinsburg Chrysler to lay off 450-500 .

 

– Three employees have been laid off from the admissions and financial aid office as part of the effort to trim $72 million from the College’s budget by 2011, according to Dean Maria Laskaris.

via TheDartmouth.com | College lays off three from admissions office.

 

Sixty of the 120 employees of the third-generation, family-owned iron castings company are on temporary layoff, said Jim Kirsh.

via WISCONSIN STATE JOURNAL.

 

us-steel-GARY | About 40 U.S. Steel Corp. workers were recently laid off, some permanently, because of problems with a blast furnace, local union officials confirmed Thursday.

via U.S. Steel lays off some workers, terminates other / nwi.com.

 

– Rocked by the financial markets and by donors also rocked by the markets, the UND Foundation and its sister organization, the UND Alumni Association, earlier this week laid off four of its 44 employees, spokeswoman Leanna Ihry said.

– CHICAGO (AdAge.com) — Doner is the latest ad agency to undergo major staff cuts amid the economic downturn.

The Southfield, Mich.-based independent shop laid off more than 100 people this week,

via Advertising Agency Doner Lays Off More Than 100 Staffers – Agency News – Advertising Age.

 

boe1– Boeing today will issue about 300 layoff notices companywide.

About 120 of those will go to employees in the Puget Sound region, about 100 of them in the Commercial Airplanes division.

via Business & Technology | Boeing issues 300 layoff notices | Seattle Times Newspaper.

 

harley-davidson2– Three months after eliminating dozens of jobs at its Kansas City plant, Harley-Davidson will lay off 70 more local workers in response to sluggish sales.

via 70 more layoffs coming at Harley-Davidson plant in KC – Kansas City Star.

 

– At a joint meeting Wednesday night, leaders of two local railroad unions, the United Transportation Union and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) told members to prepare for big layoffs in Buffalo.

via wgrz.com | Buffalo, NY | Railroad Workers Preparing for Layoffs In Buffalo.

 

hospital11– Seventeen non-clinical employees at Jackson Hospital were laid off this week, representing about 1.5 percent of the total work force at the Pine Street hospital, said hospital spokesman Peter Frohmader.

via Jackson Hospital announces layoffs | montgomeryadvertiser.com | Montgomery Advertiser.

 

– Company officials told workers and city officials that the Richmond plant at 1600 Rich Road would close this summer, a move that will idle 330 workers, including 259 production workers.

The closing will come in phases, company officials said, with the first wave coming June 16, the second June 30 and the final Aug. 28, according to a letter to Richmond Mayor Sally Hutton.

via Richmond’s Cinram plant to close, idle 300-plus workers | pal-item.com | Palladium-Item.

 

International Layoff News

 

toshiba– The company will cut 3,900 contract workers in Japan by March of next year, according to spokeswoman Hiroko Mochida. That is in addition to the 4,500 Japanese contract workers it previously said would be cut by last month.

sony-eric– STOCKHOLM (AP) — Mobile phone maker Sony Ericsson on Friday posted a euro293 million ($387 million) net loss in the first quarter on falling sales and said it would slash an additional 2,000 jobs to cut costs.

via Sony Ericsson posts loss, to cut 2,000 jobs – Yahoo! Finance.

 

– The entire workforce of the Rousse Shipyard is being laid off until further notice as of April 27, the press service of the company has said, as reported by Dnevnik daily.

– AN INVERNESS building firm is to cease trading with the loss of 22 jobs, making it the latest casualty of the recession in the Highlands

via Building firm ceases trading with loss of 22 jobs – Press & Journal .

 

gavel10– Howard Kennedy has kicked off a redundancy consultation with 40 jobs at the West End firm under threat.

via Howard Kennedy to cut 40 in new round of layoffs – Legal Week, legal news, comment, events and legal jobs.

 

gavel11– ALLENS Arthur Robinson has become the latest big firm to impose a pay freeze to deal with what is expected to be one of the most testing years for the legal services industry.

– Groundwork and demolition specialist Keltbray has said it will be forced to lay off staff as medium-sized commercial jobs dry up

via Commercial drought forces Keltbray to plan redundancies – Building.

 

– LONDON — Printed circuit board manufacturer Ruwel GmbH (Geldern/Pfullingen, Germany), which filed for insolvency earlier this year but continued to operate at a reduced level, is now planning to commence redundancies amongst its 600 staff.

via Redundancies to start at insolvent Ruwel.

 

– A Newcastle holiday firm is to close down with the loss of 108 jobs.

via BBC NEWS | UK | England | Tyne | Jobs lost as travel agent closes.

 

– TYNEDALE’S unemployment blackspot has suffered a further blow with the announcement that 28 jobs are to go at one of its factories.

via Hexham Courant | News | News at a Glance | 28 jobs lost at Haltwhistle factory .

 

– ISLAMABAD: As many as 308 non-gazetted government employees are being laid off from the Statistics Division by July 30, 2009, The News has learnt.

via 300 FBS employees to be laid off.

 

– Jensen said the closing of the plant, which employed 80 and had an annual output of 30,000 tonnes of thermal insulation materials, would not alter group earnings expectations as it was part of larger restructuring efforts.

 

Hiring News and News You Can Use

 

– RALEIGH — Gov. Beverly Perdue proposed a new program Thursday designed to quickly retrain people and match them with jobs where there are shortages.

At a news conference at WakeMed, Perdue said she would use $13.4 million in federal stimulus money to start accelerated six-month training programs for 12 occupations. She called it “12 in 6.”

via Training to match workers to open jobs – Local & State – News & Observer.

 

– The projects, which total $956 million, are expected to add 1,300 jobs, according to estimates. It will also repair electric lines and replace many of the state’s 2,500 miles of aging gas pipes.

via $956M in utility projects to add 1,300 jobs – NJ.com .

 

– April 16 (Bloomberg) — Research In Motion Ltd. Co-Chief Executive Officer Mike Lazaridis plans to keep hiring to spur the flow of new BlackBerry models, signaling the phone maker is withstanding a recession that forced rivals to trim payrolls.

via RIM Plans More Hiring as Rivals Cut Jobs in Recession (Update1) – Bloomberg.com .

 

– BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – Help is wanted at the New Embassy suites. They’re looking to hire up to 90 people as they prepare to open this summer, and a popular theme park is looking for 400 workers.

via Hundreds of jobs available in WNY | WIVB.co

 

– ADS Inc., a company that supplies special operations gear to the military, announced Thursday that it plans to hire 10 workers after winning a contract worth at least $153.6 million to sell flame-resistant garments to the U.S. Army.

via Beach company will add jobs after winning Army contract | HamptonRoads.com | PilotOnline.com.

 

– Faneuil said it will hire about 180 full-time employees and additional support staff for the project. It currently employs 2,400 at 12 offices statewide.

via Florida unemployment offices adding jobs, new call center – St. Petersburg Times.

 

– Jobs are hard to come by these days, but Live Nation is offering an opportunity to pick up one for the summer. The concert promoter/venue operator has nearly 1,500 seasonal jobs at The Gorge, in Eastern Washington, and Auburn’s White River Amphitheatre. Positions range from stagehands to T-shirt sellers, and pay around $9 to $15 per hour.

via Music & nightlife | Live Nation hiring nearly 1500 for summer jobs at The Gorge and White River Ampitheatre | Seattle Times Newspaper.

 

– Job creation, economic investment and the development of renewable energy will be the key points highlighted by Vice President Joseph Biden and Commerce Secretary Gary Locke during an event at the ABB manufacturing facility in Jefferson City, Mo., today, where they will join representatives of Wind Capital Group (WCG), Associated Electric Cooperative Inc. (AECI), ABB, GE Energy, United Auto Workers (UAW) and RMT to announce the development of the Lost Creek Wind Farm. This new project is expected to create over 2,500 jobs.

via North American Windpower: Content / Projects & Contracts / Biden Visits Missouri; New Wind Project Announced.

 

– Census Bureau officials want to count you — and they want you to count.

Mike: A relatively quiet day again for layoff announcements of the larger kind. Hopefully this latest week is not merely a lull in the action. I’m going out this weekend to test my new Canon camera, so if I shoot anything of interest, I’ll post for comment. I hope you all have a fine weekend.

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Gary Markstein - Apr 17

Gary Markstein - Apr 17

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