Massive Layoffs Make Massive Jump in January

Payrolls get the ax

The number of companies that made “mass layoffs” in January is up 50 percent from the same month last year. Mass layoffs are when a single employer lays off more than 50 employees at one time.

A total of 2,227 employers made mass layoffs in January, the government says.

Big companies make big cuts

Companies including Boeing, Pfizer, Caterpillar and Home Depot announced that they would make mass layoffs this year. The Labor Department’s report doesn’t count layoffs that have been announced but are not yet completed.

The 50 percent jump only represents the number of laid off workers that turned in claims for unemployment benefits.

Not even sports are safe

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has taken a 20 percent pay decrease, and the league has cut 169  jobs. Milliken & Co., a South Carolina-based textile maker, says it will cut 650 jobs. Zales jewelers plans to shut down 115 stores and cut 245 jobs.

More headed for the chopping block

Spansion Inc., a flash memory maker, said it plans to lay off about 3,000 employees this year. Computer chip maker Micron Technology Inc. says it will lay off as many as 2,000 workers by the end of August.

What’s this? Good news?

Consulting firm Watson Wyatt says the number of corporations that expect to make job cuts has decreased. In December, 23 percent of corporations said they expected to have to make job cuts. Now only 13 percent expect they will lay off employees. ... click here to read the rest of the article titled "Massive Layoffs Make Massive Jump in January"