Main Street

Why We Need the Jobs Act: Layoffs Continue in Every Region and Sector

Despite the talk of “recovery,” companies are still shedding jobs all over the country.
From Philly.com:

[Merck], with about 12,000 workers in the Philadelphia area, said July 29 that it planned to cut 12 percent to 13 percent of its workforce of about 100,000 by 2015 as it adjusts to market conditions and its 2009 acquisition of Schering Plough.

Twelve to thirteen percent of the workforce at a giant corporation like Merck is a big reduction. Thousands of jobs will be eliminated:

Pharma-industry watchers have suggested that about 5,200 of the total cuts could be U.S. jobs, with from 3,000 to 4,000 in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. A Merck spokesman would not comment on the state-by-state plans. The cuts through October won’t be the end of the process, though.

Even the tech sector isn’t immune. HP is eliminating tablets and PCs – and positions. From zdnet.com:

Following HP’s decision earlier in the summer to wind down the PC and tablet group, and spin or sell off the Palm division, the company has confirmed it will lay off employees, particularly in the webOS section of operations.

Reports suggest that sources close to the company say that HP has plans to lay off over 500 employees, and that the redundancies could begin as early as this week.

Defense companies, many of which receive loads of taxpayer money in the form of government contracts, are still cutting American positions. In Orlando, FL, Northrop Grumman is laying off 200 workers. From the Orlando Sentinel:

For the second time this year, Northrop Grumman Corp. plans to shed at least 200 jobs at its once-expanding laser-weaponry factory in Apopka — a move that will eliminate 24 percent of the remaining work force, the company confirmed Tuesday.

Once the layoffs take effect, Northrop Grumman Laser Systems will have eliminated more than 40 percent of its work force, or 465 jobs, so far this year. The first round of layoffs, in March, were the first job losses in about two decades at the unit, where employment peaked at nearly 1,100 workers early this year. No further cuts are expected, the company said.

Same with the defense giant Lockheed Martin: From Syracuse.com:

Eighty-five Lockheed Martin production workers are being notified of layoffs, a company spokesman said.

The layoffs affect unionized hourly workers as well as non-union salaried employees in the Salina plant. The last day of work for those affected will be Oct. 7 or Oct. 14, he said.

More from Reuters:

The greatest job losses would be felt by larger sites in Fort Worth, Texas, where about 370 jobs are being cut; Marietta, Georgia and Palmdale, California. Lockheed has cut jobs and held down discretionary spending in response to a flattening of U.S. defense spending.

From Indiana Business Journal:

Middlebury-based Pace American Enterprises Inc. plans to eliminate 106 jobs at its plant in northeastern Indiana as part of company-wide layoffs.

The manufacturer of cargo trailers notified the Indiana Department of Workforce Development about the job cuts in a letter posted Wednesday.

In Chicago, two hundred public school jobs are being cut, and more layoffs could be coming. From the Chicago Tribune:

Chicago Public Schools officials announced Thursday they have trimmed the Chief Education Office and network offices by 200 positions at a cost savings of $16 million, part of a district-wide re-organization plan under CPS’ new leadership team.

Those 200 jobs represent a 25 percent reduction in staff for those departments. The CPS budget approved in August called for $107 million in cuts across all departments. District officials say they have just $44 million of that total left to cut, expected to come through a combination of layoffs, closing vacant jobs, program reductions, streamlining curriculum, and eliminating other duplications. Officials declined to say how many more layoffs are anticipated.

In Wisconsin, where Scott Walker’s boosters are claiming miracles from his anti-union efforts, another 213 jobs lost. From the The Business Journal serving Milwaukee:

Frontier Airlines plans to slash 213 jobs in Milwaukee, according to a mass layoff notice filed Friday afternoon with the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development.

The layoffs effect Frontier workers at General Mitchell International Airport, the airport commissary and the airport maintenance facility, according to the notice.

Hospitals are still cutting staff. From Beckers Hospital Review:

AnMed Health in Anderson, S.C., is preparing to eliminate 185 positions, which is projected to save $5.2 million in its upcoming fiscal year…

As thousands more American workers lose their jobs, Congress is still dithering, and no action is being taken on the American Jobs Act. The conservatives have been serving up the same solution for over a decade now: cut taxes. It’s time to stop clinging to foolish dreams and bad policies. It’s time to pick up the pace, and jump-start the workforce and our economy.

Tags: Barack Obama, Jobs, unemployment