US January Job Cuts Triple From Year Earlier, Challenger Says

[Purveyor]

Source: Bloomberg

By Bob Willis

Feb. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Job cuts announced by U.S. employers more than tripled in January from a year earlier, led by planned cutbacks at retailers following the worst holiday-shopping season in four decades.

Firing announcements rose 222 percent last month from January 2008, to 241,749, Chicago-based Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc. said today. It was the largest total since January 2002, when job cuts reached a record of 248,475, Challenger said.

Job losses are mounting as the world’s largest economy is in the second year of the longest recession in a quarter century. President Barack Obama is pressing Congress to enact an $819 billion stimulus bill to save or create up to 4 million jobs and steer the economy toward a recovery.

“Even if the stimulus package is successful, it could take months to make a noticeable impact on the employment picture,” John A. Challenger, chief executive officer of the placement company, said in a statement. “There is no light at the end of the tunnel.”

The U.S. economy probably lost 535,000 jobs in January, according to the median projection of economists surveyed by Bloomberg ahead of the Labor Department’s Feb. 6 employment report. That would bring total job losses since January 2008 to 3.1 million.



Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aXpebY.Ej8GM&refer=us

[OhioChick]

1. Wonder what the #'s will be by next January? n/t

[Royal Sloan 09]

2. Oh noes, some CEO's say

CEO John stated, " There is no light at end of tunnel" for the middle class or the rich, John?