US companies cut 45,000 (70,000 worldwide) jobs even before stock market opens

US companies cut 45,000 jobs even before stock market opens

rawstory.com

Somebody was working this weekend to make sure thousands of other people didn't.

US companies announced they're cutting 45,000 jobs by 9 am Eastern Time on Monday morning, even before the US stock market opened, according to a quick count by Raw Story.

(visit the link for the full news article)



[edit on 26-1-2009 by Mdv2]

Caterpillar, Inc. announced they'd eliminate 20,500 jobs Monday morning.

"Caterpillar Inc said on Monday that quarterly earnings fell more than 32 percent and warned of a tough year ahead as the downturn that began in the United States metastasized into a full-blown global recession that hit sales of its earth-moving equipment," Reuters wrote, saying the industrial equipment-maker would lay off 17,000 and buy out another 2,500.

Pfizer said they'd ax 8,000 as part of a $65 billion deal to buy rival healthcare firm Wyeth.

"At the same time, Pfizer announced cost cuts that include slashing more than 8,000 jobs as it prepares for an expected revenue crash when its cholesterol drug Lipitor -- the world's top-selling medicine and source of one-quarter of Pfizer's revenue -- loses patent protection in November 2011," AP wrote.

Sprint-Nextel announced they'd shed 14 percent of their 56,000 employees.

"Sprint Nextel Corp. is eliminating about 8,000 positions in the first quarter as it seeks to cut annual costs by $1.2 billion," remarked AP.

And in the homebuilding industry?

An AP reporter writes, "Home Depot Inc. plans to eliminate 7,000 jobs while closing four dozen stores under its smaller home improvement brands as the recession continues to batter the nation's housing market."

Holy cow... 45,000 jobs on one day... I just talked to my girlfriend whose dad owns a wholesale company and they are going to fire halve of the employees.

This is thing is spinning out of control. Mark my words: it won't last long till they'll start mentioning we gotta prepare for the worst: a depression.

I have little doubt that this crisis is generated and that we cannot do anything but accept it. It's not in our control anyway. Let's just hope I'm wrong.



rawstory.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

Japan's top 12 automakers expect to cut a total of 25,000 jobs between now and the end of March to cope with an industry slump, a survey by Jiji Press concluded on Monday.

Dutch banking and insurance group ING announced 7,000 job cuts and a deal for the Dutch state to assume 80 percent of the risk on a 27.7-billion euro portfolio of troubled assets.

Dutch electronics giant Philips said it would eliminate 6,000 jobs.

As if it couldn't be any better.

You want to see the big picture....

check out layoff daily.

It's a very bleak picture

Does this mean that Obama now has to create 5,045,000 jobs in order to meet his goal of creating 5 million new jobs?

Am I the only one who finds it odd that all these companies announce these layoffs on the same day, at the same time before the stock market opens? I mean did they all meet together over the weekend and decide to do it together? Or maybe it's just due to the end of the buisness quarter and they are trying to save money. Seems strange to me.

Yes - it is strange.

Stranger still that so many in the 1st world have become slaves to what is essentially a Psychotic Corporate System (tm).

People really should watch the most excellent "main-stream" documentary:

The Corporation

and really really think about what we have become as a species.

Unbelivable!

Shrugs) its business, gotta make profits by laying off people or just go bankrupt. I'm certain you would do the same if you own a business.

Some of the people who are getting laid off have some sort of savings but it won't last long. The real desperation and real numbers of the crisis will be shown when all of them add to the unemployment line. And all the while that line is expanding from even further more drastic layoffs.. Caterpillar firing 20,000 means also less demand for products to manufactur, ie the steel and products companies who supply them will also layoff, the truck drivers who used to deliver supplies to them laid off, it's the trickle down effect. Hence my other post, "When to leave"?

Originally posted by deltaboy
Shrugs) its business, gotta make profits by laying off people or just go bankrupt. I'm certain you would do the same if you own a business.

This is not good business - this is short term gains for long term losses.

Don't get me wrong - there is a time an place for layoffs - but it is done dynamically as the business market and product/service demand changes.

This is fudging the numbers so as to get a short term stock boost - nothing more nothing less.

It will cost more to re-hire new employees and train them to the level of expertise of those who were suddenly laid off.

It's a con game pure and simple - with the worker (and the long term stockholder) ultimately taking the fall.

Wake Up before it is your turn to take a dive.