Trading Places
Inside views on the jobs market
GM to cut 10,000 salaried jobs
The pain in the auto industry keeps getting worse. General Motors has just announced that it will cut its global salaried workforce to about 63,000 from 73,000 this year. The remainder of its salaried staff face pay cuts.
In the United States, approximately 3,400 of GM’s 29,500 salaried employees will be cut. The temporary pay cut for most U.S. salaried employees runs May 1 through the end of the year. Executive employees will have their base pay cut by 10 percent, with others seeing cuts of 3 percent to 7 percent.
If you’re among those likely to be affected, tell us about the mood where you work. What severance terms and other assistance is the company expected to offer? How will you cope with reduced income?
(Picture: General Motors employees hold signs and chant before a vehicle reveal during press days at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan, January 11, 2009. REUTERS/Rebecca Cook)
Fresh job cuts at UBS, but new hires also
UBS, the biggest banker to the rich, announced a second round of job cuts after posting the biggest annual loss in Swiss history. The cuts to investment banking jobs come on top of 7,500 jobs that the bank has already axed as a result of the economic crisis.
It’s not all bad news, however. UBS hired nearly 400 financial advisers in the United States in the last quarter and sources have told Reuters it is aggressively poaching advisers from rivals including Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch and Smith Barney.
If you work at UBS, tell us where the cuts are falling, what the mood is like and what severance you’re getting, if any. And given that the bank is still willing to hire in some sectors, give us some good news about where the opportunities lie.
There is a lot of talent out there and certain areas are cleaning out old word and bringing in talent from Merrill, Bear, Lehman and the like. With no bonuses this year I suspect many more will leave and there are plenty out there waiting to fill those positions.
Ford job cuts spread
Ford UK is to cut around 850 jobs by May and review its previously agreed pay offer as it grapples with the economic impact hitting the car industry, the company said on Thursday.
The news comes a week after the automaker said it was cutting some 2,500 white-collar jobs and 1,200 jobs at Ford Motor Credit. If you’re a Ford employee, tell us how the cuts are affecting you.
Cisco disconnects up to 2,000 jobs
Cisco CEO John Chambers has said he wants to avoid layoffs on the scale seen when the tech bubble burst in 2001, but that will be scant consolation to employees hit by Wednesday’s news that the network equipment maker is cutting up to 2,000 jobs. In our report, Chambers did not rule out the possibility of a major layoff, which he defined as a cut of 10 percent or more workers.
If you work at Cisco, which ended 2008 with 67,318 employees, tells us how people are reacting to yesterday’s announcement. Where will the cuts impact and how is the company helping those affected?
Does anyone know if the positions announced are full time or contractual?
Panasonic: ideas for life, but not jobs
Panasonic, the world’s No.1 plasma TV maker, is cutting about 15,000 jobs as it grapples with a stronger yen and slowing demand. Half the cuts will be in Japan and half overseas, our report explains. If you work for Panasonic, tell us what’s happening in your office or factory. Have you been told how the cuts will impact you? How do the severance terms where you work compare with other units of Panasonic?
In light of current economic climate, a company like Panasonic has to make changes.It also has to recognise that its the staff that are the back bone of its success.
As a curently employed employee at panasonic i cannot understand that when the Direct Copier division was Tupe’d over the staff were treated very badly.The company could have given the staff a choice of redundancy or a transfer.It did not have to apply Tupe,Yet it stood by and let their long service loyal employees resign.well done Panasonic!!
How are the unions at fault for GM’s decision to cut SALARIED employees. Companies don’t cut employees that are 100% essential for the operation of business. True, you can’t cut union employees without trying to renegotiate with the whole union. However, I’d be willing to bet that a union worker on an assembly line is more vital in getting a necessary task done than an individual in an office. It’s sad, but cut the fat!
The real problem in in America is that we love American trucks & SUVs & we won’t give smaller American cars a chance. Otherwise, the car companies wouldn’t have taken such a severe hit when gas prices went up to $4.00 per gallon.