Positioning Recent Layoffs Announcements in Bigger Economic Picture

fox business ^ | 1-26-2015 | Chris Versace

[Citizen Zed]

• Schlumberger (SLB) said it would cut 9,000 jobs, or about 7% of its workforce in response to falling oil prices. Soon thereafter, oilfield services provider Baker Hughes Inc. (BHI) said it expects to lay off about 7,000 employees.

• American Express (AXP) has shared that it plans to cut more than 4,000 jobs over the coming year.

• Online auction site eBay (EBAY) announced it will lay off more than 2,000 workers, about 7% of its global workforce, and may split off its enterprise unit in addition to PayPal.

• United Airlines has shared it is assessing whether to outsource jobs at airports around the country in a cost-cutting effort that could affect some 2,000 workers.

• Global beverage company Coca-Cola Co. (KO) is letting go at least 1,600 white-collar jobs globally as part of a cost-cutting move in response to sluggish soda sales.

• Transportation equipment and aircraft company Bombardier, the third largest maker of commercial aircraft, announced 1,00 layoffs in mid-January at its Learjet business.

• Technology company Maximus (MMS) said it will lay off more than 1,500 call center employees

• Alongside an $80 million write down and a pre-tax restructuring charge of $290 million, Dreamworks Animation (DWA) announced it will eliminate about 500 jobs or about 25% of its total workforce.

• The continuing decline in demand for farm equipment will idle more than 900 employees at Deere & Co. (DE). This follows furloughs of 460 employees this past October.

Unlike much of the economic data that is rear-view mirror in nature, layoffs and restructuring charges are a front window view into the challenges and tactical moves a company is making ahead. The more widespread these announcement, the greater concern for the overall economy.

[Citizen Zed]

At least there is a slew of security vulnerabilities to keep most of the tech employees busy. Thank you NSA and Snowden for making us less secure!

[4Runner]

When I talk to employers in Florida they tell me they get hundreds of resumes for every single position that becomes available. These latest massive layoffs are going to add immeasurably to the horrific toll the loss of jobs in America is already taking on the middle class. Added to the practice of preferring “bilinguals” (code word for Hispanics and illegals)for many positions, and the “ex-military preference” programs which businesses all seem to be tripping over themselves to promote (why?—I have a theory: it’s a source for “clean” minority workers who the companies dont have to spend money screening) all of which are blatantly discriminatory—the prospect of obtaining employment for anyone who has been chronically unemployed and out of work for any length of time will be mathematically zero. I know of two men who live on my block who are going to have to move to another state to obtain employment in new fields they have retooled for after having been shut out of the jobs they held for years in other disciplines which are “no longer needed” that have either been shipped off to another country under NAFTA GATT and oppressive taxation or replaced by computers. This is going to make the depression of 1929 look like a birthday party. One other observation: In Florida the waste haulers seem to be only hiring Blacks for automated waste pickup truck drivers. These guys don’t need to lift garbage cans anymore. It’a all done by robotics. They just sit and drive. Yet you never EVER see one white male in ANY of these trucks. Additionally if you call a state agency in Florida you will always get a Black or Hispanic female or male representative. Never a white person. So there’s the genocidal, multiculti, diversity angle being played as well. How many times and ways does a population need to get shot at and spit upon before it realizes it’s been targeted for financial extinction?