RJR Plans to Slash 2,600 Jobs in $1B Cost-Cutting Effort

[hadrons]

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Holdings Inc. (NYSE:RJR - News) plans to slash 2,600 jobs, or 40% of its work force, as part of a restructuring effort aimed at cutting $1 billion in costs by the end of 2005.

The No. 2 tobacco company, battered by price wars with discount brands and traditional rivals, Wednesday said it will take a restructuring charge of about $205 million after taxes in the third quarter, primarily as a result of the work-force reduction. The job eliminations will occur over the next year, with the majority taking place in the fourth quarter of 2003 and first quarter of 2004.

....

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/dowjones/20030917/bs_dowjones/200309170818000754

Nice to see all those Bush voters at RJR enjoying the economy they voted for

[gratuitous]

1. Hee, hee!

Tobacco companies going down! Does my heart good. As long as Philip Morris pays its court judgments before going out of business, especially that $80 million one secured by our office, I'll be a happy man.

[Mel]

3. they aren't going down

they are going offshore and off to kill people in other countries.

[Mel]

2. that's right that'll teach em'

the owners and the stock holders are going to make a nice profit due to the laying off of these workers that's such a nice thing to see {sarcasm} yea! more jobs going overseas that means more money to go into the pukes campaign fund too.

[Raster]

4. each and every last merchant of death should be publicly horsewhipped...

...cigarettes kill. period. their continued advertisement and sale is a stain on our national integrity, which all things considered, is looking pretty fucking grungy of late.

www.thetruth.com

[musiclawyer]

5. They'll be in the legalized dope business within our lifetime

..so don't worry about their long term liquidity.

[tom_paine]

6. The Bushevik Recovery keeps on rolling

Of course, given the fact that the Busheviks have the same penchant for Orwellian Lies as Stalin and Hitler (but, fortunately and for the moment, not theri same penchant for physically brutalizing their own populaces), one would assume that when they say "recovery"...

...that things are actually going to get worse for the vast majority of people.

Which they are...on so many levels...they are.