Posted on 09/18/2003 10:12:03 PM PDT by chance33_98
Sun Microsystems to Cut Another 1,080 Jobs
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) - Troubled computer and software maker Sun Microsystems Inc. plans to cut another 3 percent of its work force, or an estimated 1,080 jobs, in an effort to return to sustained profitability despite sagging sales.
"This strategic realignment is an ongoing business practice that allows us to allocate resources to meet the highest priorities of the business," the Santa Clara-based company said in a statement Thursday.
At the end of the last quarter, Sun reported it had 36,000 employees. At the end of fiscal 2001, by comparison, it had 43,683 workers.
Spokeswoman May Goh Petry said the company expects said the bulk of the cuts would be made in the current quarter, though some will take place in the fiscal second and third quarters to comply with varying international labor laws.
The company also said it plans to hire in strategic, high-growth areas. Petry declined to specify what areas are targeted for cuts or new hiring. She also declined to specify how the cuts and hiring will affect overall headcount.
"What I can say is that at this point, the business realignment will not have significant impact on headcount," she said.
The company has been struggling to reinvent itself as its high-end - and high profit - equipment has been challenged by systems running the free Linux operating system and less expensive but increasingly powerful commodity hardware.
Sun's revenues have now fallen for nine straight quarters, and it is now offering its own Linux-based systems in addition to high-end machines.
In the most recent quarter, which ended June 30, Sun earned $12 million on sales of $2.98 billion. In the same period last year, it reported profits of $61 million on sales of $3.42 billion.
Just took a break from my studying for my Java cert and saw this :)
Good news though IMHO overall. Sun is revamping itself and has a lot of new stuff coming out (see www.sun.com for more on that). They see their problems and are working to fix them.
company expects said the bulk of the cuts would be made in the current quarter, though some will take place in the fiscal second and third quarters to comply with varying international labor laws.
Hmmm, So they can cut some people now, but international labor laws make them wait later for others. Guessing perhaps some cuts will be in overseas offices then, which greater than 50% here in US (they noted Bulk of folks would be done this quarter).
The previous company I worked for had to give us 60 day notices before they laid us off - it was another telecomm company that squandered away literally billions and 4000 jobs went down the drain; a fault I put squarely on the shoulders of the CEO and his cohorts, not the economy.
Which brings up Dean. He touts how well his state is doing on things, takes credit for it. Well, if he is the reason his state is doing so well then it follows that the reason others ones aren't (CA for example) is due to the gov's of those states...Hmmmmm
The invisible hand is rather busy in the computer world these days.
Hmmm. The company discovers that by a new California law it will soon have to pay for the health insurance dependant coverage on over 1,080 employees they can cut and voila- the axe falls.
Must be a coincidence. Of course, this unfunded mandate on business couldn't affect hiring or firing. Could it?
Yet another business sector is moving from innovation and production to "services." I would not be surprized to see that the next generation of tech innovation and leadership comes from another nation. We seem to be obsessed with a death wish.
Someone(I don't remember his name) that posts on FR IT threads works doing webmaster stuff for Sun. I hope he is ok through this.
Er, and the relevance of the snip from your remark was that I said essentially the same thing you did about overpriced, high-end equipment and linked to their product catalog as proof. Ten minuntes later the website was changed to include the "Blade" series of consumer-oriented machines. He fessed up that he had forgotten to include them on the website before.
Anyway, I really hate to keep hearing about these problems.
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