Job Cuts Keep Coming—Is Your Firm On the List?

More companies announced layoffs this week as the employment picture continued to dim.

News Corp., GlaxoSmithKline and Tiffany & Co. on became the latest victims of the weakening economy, each cutting an undisclosed number of jobs.

CNBC.com

The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for unemployment benefits jumped to a 26-year high last week, according to government data on Thursday that pointed to a rapid deterioration in the economy.

Additionally, the number of people staying on the benefit rolls hit a record high in the week ended Jan. 24, showing the weak labor market has yet to hit bottom. On Friday, the Labor Department will issue the employment report for January, and analysts are expecting a drop of 525,000 payroll jobs.

The department said initial claims for state unemployment insurance benefits rose 35,000 to a seasonally adjusted 626,000 in the week ended Jan. 31, the highest since the week ending Oct. 30, 1982. The prior week's number was revised up to 591,000 from 588,000.

Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast 585,000 new claims.

The number of people staying on the benefits roll after drawing an initial week of aid surged by 20,000 to a record 4.788 million in the week ended Jan. 24, the latest week for which the data is available, from 4.768 million the previous week.

The four-week moving average for new claims, considered to be a better gauge of underlying trends as it irons out week-to-week volatility, rose to 582,250, the highest reading since the week ending Dec. 4, 1982.

Here is a rundown of corporate job cuts announced so far this year:

• News Corp's CEO Rupert Murdoch, announced the company would slash costs and indicated layoffs were in store.
• GlaxoSmithKline did not spell out the number of jobs it would cut but analysts expect thousands more positions to be shed from a global workforce of around 100,000.
• Reeling from a precipitous slump in global holiday sales, Tiffany & Co , has laid off an undisclosed number of employees around the world, including several at its Westport and Greenwich stores.
• Estee Lauder said it would cut 2,000 jobs, or 6 percent of its work force, over the next two years as the apparel firm grappled with a 30 percent drop in its second-quarter profit and a difficult outlook for the coming year.
• Magna International will close its gear assembly plant in Syracuse, New York, after workers rejected a contract the company said wasnecessary to keep the factory competitive. The shutdown of the New Process Gear facility will ultimately eliminate 1,400 jobs.

• THQ posted a quarterly loss as sales of video games fell more than expected, and also said that it plans to layoff 600 people in fiscal 2010 and cut spending.
• Talbots said it plans to save $150 million by cutting 370 corporate jobs, or 17 percent of its corporate headcount, reducing the hours of workers in its stores and call centers and suspending its matching contributions to employees' 401(k) retirement accounts.
• Auto parts maker Tenneco posted a wider quarterly loss Thursday due to tumbling vehicle production and said it is closing three plants and slashing 1,100 jobs.
• Footwear retailer Brown Shoe said it expects to cut 12 percent to 14 percent of its domestic work force, excluding stores and distribution centers, and take a charge of $27 million to $30 million related to its cost-reduction actions.
• Cisco Systems said forecast revenue will drop far more sharply in the current quarter than Wall Street expected, and announced the network equipment maker is cutting up to 2,000 jobs.
• Bloomberg will cut 100 television and radio jobs in the first layoffs since it was founded in 1981 by now-New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
• Fidelity National Financial , the largest U.S. title insurer, said it cut 1,500 jobs in January, and posted a fourth-quarter loss as the housing slump drove down home sales and refinancings.
• Clorox posted a lower quarterly profit, as consumers bought cheaper products and used up what they had at home, and said it would cut 170 jobs due to the tough economy.
• Allergan , maker of the anti-wrinkle treatment Botox, reported lower fourth-quarter earnings that beat Wall Street forecasts and said it would lay off 460, or 5 percent, of its workforce because of the recession.

CONTINUED : The Employment Gloom Continues...

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