Job Cuts in U.S. Tech Sector Soar (in 3rd quarter), Report Finds

[UpInArms]

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=domesticNews&storyID=6530638

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. technology sector suffered another round of widespread layoffs during the third quarter, with computer firms slashing jobs most aggressively, a report said on Monday.

"High-tech job cuts are on the way up as the end of the year approaches," said John A. Challenger, chief executive officer of Challenger, Gray & Christmas. "Behind this trend is the fact that technology companies have virtually no pricing power,"

Job cuts in technology jumped 60 percent between July and September to 54,701, compared with 34,213 layoffs in the second quarter. Computer companies alone saw job cuts jump 127 percent, to 30,624.

...more...

[MSgt213]

1. We need more people to work on the internets so there's hope

[kysrsoze]

23. Well, since there's evidently more than one, we have progress!

[acmavm]

2. Excuse me, I heard bush* say that the job market is doing great. There's

all kinds of new jobs being created, especially in small business.

More ammo for Kerry, kick bush*s ass with it John!!

[ewagner]

7. Small business examples

Karl's lawn service: Have your lawn serviced by a former computer programmer.

John's Snow Removal Service: Explore the benefits of having your snow removed by a person with an advanced degree.

Bob's Resume Service: More than two years of experience in preparing resumes for people who have been "outsourced".

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

24. Yeah all these people have to do is go back to school

In other words George "Let them eat cake".

[aquart]

3. I'm sure a few courses in community college will help.

[mhr]

4. Refugee From Telecom And Aviation - Unemployed 52 Months

No hope in sight for a new job.

Over 2,500 resumes out the door with no response from any employer.

CV Includes:
BSEE
MBA
Commercial Pilot
Honorably Discharged Naval Officer

-----
The local community college has new curriculum in honor of *. The key course is called:

Flipping Burgers With Style.

The companion offering for unemployed white collar workers is

Wal-Mart greeter hint's and tips.

The college guarantees a new minimum wage job with one semester of training.

[Mister K]

5. Where are you located (State?)

[mhr]

8. Dallas, TX - See The Attached Graphic From The Dallas Fed

Illustrating how badly Texas was hit under Bush.

[mondohondo]

22. I Had an Interesting Conversation with a Man

Last week. I was traveling and I took a cab home from the airport and noticed the Kerry-Edwards button on the driver's dashboard. I asked him what he thought about the debates and we got to talking. It turns out that this fellow has a Masters degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and had been employed as an engineer at General Motors for many years earning a very good wage.

One day the boss came and told him that he was being let go. No severance, no health care (other than COBRA, which is a national disgrace), no nothing. To support his wife and five kids he took a job driving a cab, because it pays better than any of the other engineering jobs he could find.

This is George Bush's America in a nutshell. Extremely talented people deprived of a decent living through corporate greed. His story literally broke my heart.

You know what was the most compelling part of this man's story? This man still was as cheerful as could be and held onto an infectious optimism that everything would come out OK in the end. He felt that once we get rid of Bush, everything will be right again.

I gave him what I hope was a decent tip when we got to my house and thanked him. I also resolved to do whatever I could to get John Kerry elected. So now, here I am, taking the first Monday and Tuesday of November off from work so I can work the phones and act as a runner from my local polling place to County HQ and back again. I'm doing it for that happy cab driver, so he can get a decent job again.

[mhr]

25. Thanks For The Story - That Was Great On Many Levels

Personally, I am working the early election polls as a clerk. This is my effort to help keep the election clean and fair.

[DrZeeLit]

6. Answer: More Education

Those techies... they just don't have enough education.
One, two, three master's degrees just aren't enough.
They gotta go back to Community College.
Get retrained.
To work.... at MacD's or Walmart or ...for a change of pace, how about their local Jiffy Lube??? It's sorta techie, isn't it?

Sheesh, get an education, will ya!

[beaver tamer]

9. Won't the IT unemployed be the one's DRAFTED?

[Anakin Skywalker]

16. That'd be a good thing.

Let's hope so. Then maybe they will wake up and kick these unscrupulous, conscienceless, profiteering-by-all-means-necessary @$$holes out of our government!

[DuaneBidoux]

10. There's NEVER been a shortage of jobs since Bush came to office...

and they'll all pay the rent on a lovely one bedroom box under a bridge.

[VegasWolf]

11. *'s AA Curriculum: 101 - Orange picking for PhDs n/t

New Information Shows Bush Indecisive, Paranoid, Delusional

[Robert Oak]

12. what a lie

it's ridiculous the US corporations who slashed and diced are putting
the saved money into the CEO's pockets, revenues for shareholders,
flat or slight increase...

That's right, there is a direct correlation between fired Americans and increase in CEO's pay and bonus.

meanwhile, Infosys, Wipro and the rest are having record making profits,
60%, 89% growth, 200B dollar industry...

So, what I now want to know is...

is the original premise of "we have to remain competitive" a load
of hogwash too and in fact, US corporations are literally giving
away their own farm to line their pockets and are destroying their
own companies?

[SquireJons]

13. OK, I'm an unemployed techie

... and headlines like this scare the sh!t out of me. But here's my take on this story: no big deal.

Why? Because the jobs that they are talking about are manufacturing jobs. That's a far cry from systems analysts, network professionals and programmers, which is where the vast majority of the jobs are. My sources tell me that IT is back. We'll see, but this story tells me nothing.

[Supersedeas]

14. and we're just turning the corner

[GinaMaria]

15. Just read an article today

on recruitment and staffing about Minnesota Life. Their IT department is phenomenal. They don't hire a bunch of people just to lay them off when things slow down. The article is by Joe Mullich. The title is Minnesota Life takes the long view on IT hiring and training. Tag line "It bypasses "techie-geeks" trains like mad, promotes from within and reaps the benefits in skill and loyalty" My boss handed it to me, because she wants our IT department run in a similar way.

We got screwed in Y2K because our pay and benefits were not competitive and as a result we didn't get to pick from the top performing IT candidates. We are about to see a huge portion of our IT workforce retire. Not only do we have to transfer their knowledge but we need to hire people to fill those spots. We will likely hire 250 IT people next year. We want to be prepared this time.

So if any of you technophiles would consider working in Chicago (a very democratic city), PM me with your resume. I'll get it to our IT recruiter.

[daa]

17. Indian IT major Infosys net profit jumps 49 percent as outsourcing booms

And stupid US business continues to lay off thier customers.

Infosys added 5,010 employees during the three months, the most new hires in any quarter ever, after hiring 5,000 during the previous financial year, said Infosys chief operating officer S. Gopalakrishnan.

The recruits boosted total staff strength to 32,949.

http://technology.news.designerz.com/indian-it-major-infosys-net-profit-jumps-49-percent-as-outsourcing-booms.html

[barb162]

18. we send our tech knowledge and might overseas and where will

that leave us again? Meanwhile we send our tech people to pasture. Our country is so on the wrong track.

[KoKo]

19. yeah...all that stuff they told college grads to go into...and those of us

who were older were told to go and pay to get "re-training" we are supposed to go into.

It wasn't much of a "window" for employment, though, was it? :shrug: We would all have been better to train to be "plumbers, carpet cleaners, and landscape technicians" (to better supply the "McMansion" crowd) to service the "Housing Bubble.

There ARE Oppportunities for techies, though. "Home Theaters" are on the rise to fill up the "unused room" in the McMansion...and I hear "lighting specialists" need input from "techies" to coordinate the landscape lighting for the McMansion into sound and fountains timed to go off to impress guests.

There are "Security" applications for techies, also. The McMansion Crowd needs security measures timed to their individual needs.
Since they have several McMansions the issue of "Security" is utmost in their minds. So, the security must be "multi-tasked" according to the location of their travels between home.

Therefore, the "Traveling Techie" on call to the busy executive or entrepreneur who has many "McMansions" is as important as having one's own hairdresser as in the infamous "Christophe" the hairstylist to Presidents who is so precise in his hairstyling that he cannot keep up with demand. (Hey...as someone who has "untameable hair" I give the guy a break and those who use him to look their best) But...whatever.. the "gig today" is to hook up with the Fortune 500 (Millionairs & Billionaires) and hawk your services if you are good enough...and YOU TOO can avoid that "time served in your local Community College under Bush where you train to be a waiter in the fast food or a "valet" to the rich and famous.

What the hell else can they train you for? Although I paid my last plumber $75.00 just to drive to my house...and the person who came to fix my dishwasher charged $85.00 just to tell me it was broken and I needed a new one. Where can you get better than these prices?

Retrain as a "Home Specialist." It's better than watching your job go to India...and you can set your own hours...but the pay..after the "Massa" deducts isn't going to be what you earned in the "Tech Bubble."

Fame is Fleeting...we are all in this "downsizing boat" together. :shrug:

[daa]

20. If you find out

pleasse let me know. I have 4 years of grad school and IBM sent my job to India. All Chimpy says is go to a community college. For What??????

[RazzleCat]

21. tech in the toilet in my area

unemployed tech also. (ba in computer science) now here are the job skills that are getting me a job.....retail. yes the tech future is in having good people skills. Spent the majority of the day today meeting a potential employer, and had a quick tech test (no problem) then over 3 hours of interview over my retail skills. seems tech's are a dime a dozen, but a project manager with detail abilities, tech background, and most important people skills can get a real job. from what I understand, they need a person who can not only build the machine, program it, install it, but also talk nice and friendly to the customer. so if your an unemployed tech, get those people skills in shape. FYI the last few interviews for "real jobs" have all focused on my people skills, not the tech, its almost a standard now to have to take a test over tech skills, but then comes the hurdle of having a history of setting up teams, working with public and to smile all the time. the other type of tech job in my area is strictly contract, show up install the network, and leave, max time 6 months for a huge roll out. no one has a full staff anymore, just hire for the short term and keep the one admin to oversee the temps.