Unemployment by the Numbers: Layoffs Since November 1

by Derek Hoffman

Lately, I continue to see layoffs popping up in the news on a very consistent basis (again). So, I put together a list of company names and their recent layoff announcements right here as a one-stop-shop to showcase the fact that these people, who are consumers in the global economy, will be very worried about their upcoming holiday time.

Ben Bernanke said recovery? I still smell recession …

Since November 1st, 2009, here are the major layoff announcements which hit the wires:

-Applied Materials (Nasdaq: AMAT) to cut 1,300 to 1,500 jobs;

-AOL (TWX) lays off 100 employees ahead of spinoff ;

-Adobe (Nasdaq: ADBE) to cut about 680 full-time jobs;

-Electronic Arts Inc. (Nasdaq: ERTS) said it is cutting 1,500 jobs, representing about 17 percent of its work force;

-Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM) is shutting 300 dealerships in Japan over the next three years;

-Lloyds Bank (NYSE: LYG) is cutting or moving 5,000 more jobs;

-Sprint (NYSE: S) plans to cut up to 2,500 jobs;

-Daimler (NYSE: DAI) to cut 1,000 jobs in Germany;

-HSBC (HBC) cutting 1,700 jobs in the UK;

-Paper maker UPM (UPMKY.PK) to lay off 870 workers in Finland;

-Nokia Siemens Networks (NYSE: SI) to lay off up to 5,700;

-Royal Bank Scotland (NYSE: RBS) to cut 3,700 jobs in their UK branch network;

Cost-cutting is good for a company’s bottom line, but it does not support the all-important consumer who contributes to shopping at retail, paying their mortgage, and sustaining their monthly expenses. These numbers indicate people all over the world will be requiring more help from the government, therefore increasing deficits.

If I’ve missed some job cut announcements you have seen, feel free to leave a comment and let me know!

Author's Disclosure: No positions in the companies mentioned.

Comments

[Michael Clark:]

I'm glad you wrote this article, because it mirrors my own thinking this week as I saw layoff notice after layoff notice. I guess we'll all be working for the government sooner or later.

Nov 13 04:26 AM

[tvass2:]

Hi
Your numbers highlight two more serious and deeper issues than just the decline in consumer spending. First, the destruction of the jobs you cite are not matched anywhere in the U. S. economy by small business job creation. This gap is called the jobless recovery and it ultimately leads to permanent unemployment, just like the situation in Europe.
Second, as the WSJ reported yesterday, if and when an unemployed worker finds a job, the income and benefits are about 1/2 of the prior job. Most American workers are sliding down the ladder to a third world wage and benefits package. This is the ultimate outcome of the disastrous trade policies that confused exporting goods with outsourcing jobs.
The solution, as if the Obama folks actually cared about jobs, is a greatly increased rate of investment in small businesses and a requirement that companies invest 1/2 their profits obtained from global trade back into the U. S. economy.

Thomas Vass
Raleigh, NC

Nov 13 06:02 AM

[Michael Clark:]

This is a classic description of deflation. This is what we are headed into, no matter what Bernanke and friends have to say or do. We're going down into the forge, and it won't be easy. We have to be re-made, we have to have our weak metal reforged into a new and better sword.


On Nov 13 06:02 AM tvass2 wrote:

> Hi
> Your numbers highlight two more serious and deeper issues than just
> the decline in consumer spending. First, the destruction of the jobs
> you cite are not matched anywhere in the U. S. economy by small business
> job creation. This gap is called the jobless recovery and it ultimately
> leads to permanent unemployment, just like the situation in Europe.
>
> Second, as the WSJ reported yesterday, if and when an unemployed
> worker finds a job, the income and benefits are about 1/2 of the
> prior job. Most American workers are sliding down the ladder to a
> third world wage and benefits package. This is the ultimate outcome
> of the disastrous trade policies that confused exporting goods with
> outsourcing jobs.
> The solution, as if the Obama folks actually cared about jobs, is
> a greatly increased rate of investment in small businesses and a
> requirement that companies invest 1/2 their profits obtained from
> global trade back into the U. S. economy.
>
> Thomas Vass
> Raleigh, NC

Nov 13 06:45 AM

[Pat C:]

This is a classic description of deflation. This is what we are headed into, no matter what Bernanke and friends have to say or do. We're going down into the forge, and it won't be easy. We have to be re-made, we have to have our weak metal reforged into a new and better sword.
Well spoken Mr. Clark, you get it, now for the rest of us.

Nov 13 09:39 AM

[TeresaE:]

But with 70% of processed food, 50% of pharmaceuticals and OTC medicine/first aid, not too mention nearly 100% of our clothing and electronics coming from outside our borders, "deflation" is going to feel pretty inflationary for the bulk of our citizens.

And this dollar destruction will be felt long before we lose MORE of our paychecks to forced insurance and Cap and Trade.

The increase in mass layoffs real effect comes when non-reported local stores, vendors and others lay off their staffs - again.

Fewer customers for all. What a brilliant recovery!


On Nov 13 09:39 AM Pat C wrote:

> This is a classic description of deflation. This is what we are headed
> into, no matter what Bernanke and friends have to say or do. We're
> going down into the forge, and it won't be easy. We have to be re-made,
> we have to have our weak metal reforged into a new and better sword.
>
> Well spoken Mr. Clark, you get it, now for the rest of us.

Nov 13 01:35 PM

[chris coonan:]

Forbes also publishes an online list of layoffs at the Fortune 500...I think you missed a few, but the pattern is what counts. Not a recovery.

Nov 17 06:24 AM

[chris coonan:]

Aetna announced 1000 jobs go today, by the 1st Quarter.

From Forbes list in October, no updates for the 1st half of November yet.....

Oct. 30: Boeing ( BA - news - people ), in anticipation of less federal support, eliminates 98 positions from its missile defense program.

Oct. 29: News Corp.'s ( NWS - news - people )Wall Street Journal closes its Boston bureau, affecting nine journalists

Oct. 28: AMR's ( AMR - news - people ) American Airlines closes a maintenance base and cuts 700 jobs

Oct. 28: US Airways ( LCC - news - people ) reorganizes in search of profits, layoffs near 1,000.

Oct. 26: Quest Diagnostics' ( DGX - news - people ) leaves 60 jobs cut in order to make laboratory more efficient.

Oct. 23: Lockheed Martin ( LMT - news - people ) cuts 50 in the face of stagnant defense budgets.

Oct. 21: Bristol-Meyers Squibb ( BMY - news - people ) plans to lay off 113 as it centralizes its presence in southern Indiana.

Oct. 20: Sun Microsystems ( JAVA - news - people ) lays off 3,000 as its merger with Oracle ( ORCL - news - people ) is left in limbo by European regulators.

Oct. 17: Comcast ( CMCSA - news - people ) cuts 64 jobs in a reorganization effort.

Nov 18 08:43 PM

[chris coonan:]

From Forbes Leadership Section, Layoff Ticker....(updated once per month) This is a pretty sobering list, just from the top 500 companies in America - over 611,000 people. I don't think you can call them "dead weight" as the one's firing do.

Date Company Total Laid Off Industry
10/30/2009 Boeing 11,028 Aerospace & Defense
10/29/2009 News Corp. 554 Media
10/28/2009 AMR 1,944 Transportation
10/23/2009 Lockheed Martin 1,140 Aerospace & Defense
10/21/2009 Bristol-Meyers Squibb 3,813 Pharmaceuticals
10/20/2009 Sun Microsystems 6,000 Technology
10/17/2009 Comcast 64 Telecommunications
10/16/2009 Verizon 8,308 Telecommunications
10/15/2009 MetLife 34 Insurance
10/14/2009 Interpublic Group 40 Media
10/14/2009 eBay 60 Retailing
10/7/2009 Dell 1,665 Technology
10/6/2009 Thermo Fisher 480 Health Care
9/30/2009 Navistar International 705 Durables
9/16/2009 ConAgra 300 Food
9/14/2009 Eli Lilly & Co. 5,500 Biotechnology
9/11/2009 Monsanto 1,855 Chemicals
9/10/2009 Deere & Co. 2,548 Capital Goods
9/9/2009 HJ Heinz 65 Food
9/8/2009 Valero Energy 250 Oil & Gas
9/2/2009 Danaher 3,300 Conglomerates
8/20/2009 General Electric 3,568 Conglomerates & Aerospace
8/4/2009 Altera Corp. 87 Semiconductors
7/29/2009 UAL 1,050 Transportation
7/29/2009 Intuit 420 Software & Services
7/29/2009 General Electric 3,518 Conglomerates
7/23/2009 Air Products and Chemicals 1,150 Chemicals
7/21/2009 Continental 1,700 Transportation
7/16/2009 Harley-Davidson 2,100 Consumer Durables
7/14/2009 Norfolk Southern 84 Transportation
7/8/2009 AGCO 154 Capital Goods
7/6/2009 3M 3,700 Conglomerates
7/3/2009 Dow Chemical 7,500 Chemicals
7/2/2009 Las Vegas Sands Corp. 477 Hotels, Restaurants & Leisure
6/29/2009 Hess Corp. 270 Oil & Gas
6/24/2009 United Technologies 13,290 Conglomerates
6/24/2009 Chesapeake Energy 265 Oil & Gas Operations
6/12/2009 Textron 5,965 Conglomerates
6/9/2009 General Motors 75,658 Consumer Durables
6/9/2009 Berkshire Hathaway 93 Finance
5/29/2009 Cintas 650 Business Services
5/19/2009 Hewlett-Packard 6,400 Technology
5/19/2009 Medtronic 1,800 Health Care
5/18/2009 American Express 4,000 Financials
5/15/2009 Nike 1,750 Personal Products
5/12/2009 Applied Materials 300 Semiconductors
5/7/2009 Cummins 2,037 Capital Goods
5/7/2009 El du Pont de Nemours 4,500 Chemicals
5/6/2009 Wells Fargo 548 Banking
5/5/2009 Microsoft 10,000 Software
5/5/2009 Allstate 66 Insurance
4/28/2009 Clear Channel 2,440 Media
4/27/2009 Lockheed Martin 225 Aerospace & Defense
4/27/2009 PPG Industries 2,610 Chemicals
4/27/2009 CSX 150 Transportation
4/23/2009 Embarq 51 Telecommunications
4/22/2009 Philip Morris 1,100 Tobacco
4/22/2009 T. Rowe Price 288 Financials
4/22/2009 Capital One Financial 60 Financials
4/22/2009 Brown-Forman 250 Food
4/21/2009 Yahoo! 675 Software
4/20/2009 Nordstrom 72 Retailing
4/18/2009 Weyerhaeuser 814 Materials
4/15/2009 Emerson Electric 14,200 Conglomerates
4/14/2009 Discover Financial Services 500 Business Services
4/9/2009 Johnson & Johnson 900 Pharmaceuticals
4/8/2009 Procter & Gamble 410 Household
4/6/2009 Eastman Chemical 300 Chemicals
4/3/2009 FedEx 1,900 Transportation
4/3/2009 Walt Disney 3,100 Media
4/2/2009 Rite Aid 297 Retailing
3/31/2009 Cardinal Health 800 Health Care
3/30/2009 KLA-Tencor 500 Semiconductors
3/27/2009 Wal-Mart Stores 1,850 Retailing
3/26/2009 Agilent Technologies 3,300 Technology
3/26/2009 Google 300 Software
3/25/2009 Constellation Brands 400 Food
3/25/2009 IBM 7,800 Software
3/24/2009 Legg Mason 320 Financials
3/24/2009 Synovus Financial 200 Banking
3/22/2009 Freeport-McMoRan 2,800 Materials
3/19/2009 Lam Research 375 Semiconductors
3/17/2009 Caterpillar 27,378 Capital Goods
3/17/2009 Corning 200 Technology
3/16/2009 TRW Automotive Holdings 417 Consumer Durables
3/13/2009 Baker Hughes 3,000 Oil & Gas
3/13/2009 Sunoco 750 Oil & Gas
3/10/2009 Lowe's 82 Retailing
3/10/2009 Principal Financial 60 Financials
3/4/2009 Northrop Grumman 750 Aerospace
3/4/2009 Dover 180 Conglomerates
3/4/2009 General Dynamics 1,379 Aerospace
3/3/2009 U.S. Steel 6,705 Materials
3/3/2009 FirstEnergy 335 Utilities
2/26/2009 JPMorgan Chase 14,000 Banking
2/25/2009 Dow Chemical, Corning 800 Joint Venture
2/25/2009 Coach 150 Household
2/24/2009 Micron Technology 2,000 Semiconductors
2/19/2009 Avon Products 3,000 Household
2/19/2009 Forturne Brands 236 Consumer Durables
2/18/2009 Chevron 230 Oil and gas
2/18/2009 Delta Air Lines 2,100 Transportation
2/18/2009 Best Buy 540 Retailing
2/18/2009 Goodyear 5,000 Consumer Durables
2/17/2009 MDU Resources 130 Utilities
2/17/2009 Johnson Controls 205 Consumer Durables
2/17/2009 Smithfield Foods 1,800 Food
2/16/2009 Delphi 800 Consumer Durables
2/11/2009 W.W. Grainger 400 Capital Goods
2/11/2009 Terex 5,000 Capital Goods
2/10/2009 U.S. Airways Group 233 Transportation
2/5/2009 Estée Lauder 2,000 Personal Products
2/5/2009 Allergan 460 Pharmaceuticals
2/4/2009 Time Warner 2,750 Media
2/4/2009 Cisco Systems 2,000 Technology
2/3/2009 Bancshares 500 Banking
2/3/2009 Electronic Arts 1,100 Software
2/3/2009 PNC Financial Services 5,800 Banking
2/2/2009 Goodrich 35 Aerospace
2/2/2009 Macy's 7,000 Retailing
1/30/2009 Sears Holdings 300 Retailing
1/29/2009 Broadcom 200 Semiconductors
1/29/2009 International Gaming Technology 200 Leisure
1/29/2009 Ford 3,800 Durables
1/29/2009 Eastman Kodak 4,500 Household
1/29/2009 Black and Decker 1,200 Household
1/28/2009 Starbucks 6,700 Restaurants
1/27/2009 Target 1,000 Retailing

1/27/2009 Masco 600 Construction
1/26/2009 Texas Instruments 3,400 Semiconductors
1/26/2009 Lincoln National 540 Insurance
1/26/2009 Home Depot 7,000 Retailing
1/26/2009 Pfizer 19,800 Pharmaceuticals
1/26/2009 Sprint Nextel 8,000 Telecommunications
1/23/2009 Abercrombie & Fitch 50 Retailing
1/22/2009 Huntsman 1,665 Chemicals
1/21/2009 Burlington Santa Fe 2,500 Transportation
1/21/2009 SPX 400 Conglomerates
1/21/2009 Intel 5,000 Semiconductors
1/21/2009 Wynn Resorts 53 Leisure
1/21/2009 Eaton 5,609 Capital Goods
1/16/2009 ConocoPhillips 1,300 Oil & Gas
1/16/2009 Hertz Global Holdings 4,000 Business Services
1/16/2009 WellPoint 600 Health Care
1/16/2009 Advanced Micro Devices 1,700 Semiconductors
1/15/2009 Xerox 275 Business Services
1/15/2009 MeadWestvaco 2,000 Materials
1/15/2009 Autodesk 750 Software
1/15/2009 Marshall & Ilsley 830 Banking
1/14/2009 Ecolab 1,000 Chemicals
1/14/2009 Motorola 4,000 Technology
1/13/2009 KeyCorp 200 Banking
1/13/2009 Newell Rubbermaid 75 Household
1/12/2009 Mosaic 1,000 Chemicals
1/12/2009 Precision Castparts 40 Defense
1/9/2009 Oracle 500 Software
1/9/2009 Smithfield Foods 75 Food
1/8/2009 Union Pacific 230 Transportation
1/7/2009 Walgreen 1,000 Retailing
1/7/2009 EMC 2,400 Technology
1/6/2009 Alcoa 13,500 Materials
1/5/2009 Cigna 1,100 Health Care
12/31/2008 Mohawk Industries 160 Consumer Durables
12/31/2008 Tyson Foods 120 Food
12/31/2008 Target 132 Retailing
12/30/2008 Allegheny Technologies 323 Materials
12/30/2008 Motorola 400 Technology
12/23/2008 ULA (Boeing, Lockheed Martin) 172 Joint Venture
12/23/2008 Las Vegas Sands 11,500 Leisure
12/22/2008 Parker-Hannifin 405 Capital Goods
12/19/2008 Genworth Financial 1,000 Insurance
12/19/2008 Sovereign Bancorp 1,000 Banking
12/18/2008 Omnicom Group 3,145 Media
12/17/2008 Ryder System 3,100 Services
12/17/2008 Western Digital 2,500 Technology
12/17/2008 Aetna 1,000 Health Care
12/17/2008 Parker-Hannifin 46 Capital Goods
12/16/2008 CBS 30 Media
12/15/2008 Merrill Lynch 400 Financials
12/15/2008 Charles Schwab 100 Financials
12/12/2008 International Paper 2,050 Materials
12/11/2008 Bank of America 35,000 Banking
12/11/2008 Whirlpool 250 Durables
12/10/2008 Mohawk Industries 105 Durables
12/09/2008 Praxair 1,600 Chemicals
12/08/2008 Anheuser-Busch Co. 1,400 Food
12/08/2008 Wyndham Worldwide 4,000 Leisure
12/05/2008 Cablevision 100 Media
12/05/2008 Staples 140 Retailing
12/04/2008 Steel Dynamics 65 Materials
12/04/2008 Windstream 170 Telecommunications
12/04/2008 AT&T 12,000 Telecommunications
12/03/2008 Gannett 2,000 Media
12/03/2008 Adobe Systems 600 Software
12/03/2008 Jefferies Group 300 Financials
12/03/2008 Viacom 850 Media
12/01/2008 PepsiCo 87 Food
11/25/2008 Dana Holding 50 Durables
11/24/2008 BlackRock 10 Financials
11/21/2008 Western Union 200 Business Services
11/20/2008 Bank of New York Mellon 1,800 Banking
11/17/2008 Citigroup 52,000 Banking
11/12/2008 Morgan Stanley 2,000 Finance
11/12/2008 Liberty Media 910 Retailing
11/11/2008 AK Steel Holding 800 Materials
11/6/2008 Mattel 1,000 Household
11/6/2008 MGM Mirage 400 Leisure
11/4/2008 Hartford Financial Services Group 500 Finance

*Total announced layoffs at America's 500 largest public companies as measured by a composite ranking of sales, profits, assets and market value since Nov. 1 2008. Includes layoffs at subsidiaries, joint ventures, and majority owned companies.

Nov 18 08:48 PM