More Malaysian men tend to take nurses as career: official

Tight job market forces up wages for summer jobs

Bowater says layoffs coming for Dalhousie Mill

Dell plans 10 percent work force layoff

Citigroup to cut 17,000 jobs amid overhaul

GST workers receive lay-off notices

Winnipeg airline mechanics being 'bumped' by Vancouver workers

Solar power may bring new jobs to Texas

Nokia Siemens to cut 2,290 jobs in Germany

Hanesbrands closing nine plants, including one in Montreal

Hanesbrands closing nine plants, including one in Montreal

More Nepalis seeking overseas jobs

PRC To Add 500 New Jobs to Their Austin, Texas Center

Moer Than 16000 Veterans to Benefit from $27Mm in Job Training Grants

The Palazo Resort-Hotel-Casino Now Hiring

State Manufactures' Guide Reports Maryland Manufacturing Jobs Down 1.7%

Massive Job Cuts Feared in Kenya

Romania Issues New Rules for Foreign Job Seekers

New Mobius owner issues layoff warning

By ALLAN DRURYTHE JOURNAL NEWS
(Original publication: June 25, 2007)

The Naples, Fla.-based company that bought Rye software maker Mobius Management Group Inc. filed a notice with the state indicating it plans to close the operation and lay off 184 workers.
Allen Systems Group, which bought Mobius for $211 million, filed the notice with the state Department of Labor's Office of Dislocated Workers Program. It said the layoffs would take place by Aug. 14 and listed Aug. 27 as the closing date.

Mitchell Gross and Joseph J. Albracht founded the company in 1981 in order to provide products and services that would help companies manage their records. At the time the sale was announced in April, Mobius said it would continue as a subsidiary of Allen Systems Group.

Reach Allan Drury at adrury@lohud.com or at 914-694-5069.

ANALYSIS - India market boom makes analysts scarce, costly

By Swati Bhat

MUMBAI (Reuters) - Indian fund managers and brokerages face a severe shortage of analysts as talent is snapped up by big-spending foreign firms lured by a four-year bull run in the local stock market.

International financial firms are paying analysts twice as much as their domestic peers, people in the industry say, with smaller brokerages worst hit as they are squeezed by higher wage bills and falling commissions as Internet broking grows.

"Foreign players come with a huge capital and a capacity to sustain losses for three to five years," said Nirmal Jain of India Infoline, a financial services firm.

Global houses such as Morgan Stanley, Lehman Brothers, Goldman Sachs and Credit Suisse have been ramping up operations in India, while others like German insurer Allianz have said they may launch asset management services in India.

Last month, JPMorgan hired equity analysts away from Citigroup and local brokerages Kotak Securities and Stratcap Securities.

Local brokerages are forced to pay top dollar to fight back.

India Infoline last month paid 440 million rupees, nearly twice its January-March quarterly profits, in joining bonuses for four senior executives from CLSA.

Salaries for analysts with up to 10 years experience have nearly trebled in the last three to five years, said Vasudeo Joshi, head of institutional equities at Man Financial.

But that has not deterred foreign firms, for whom Indian analysts are relatively cheap as their salaries are below international levels.

Fund managers in India, on the other hand, are paid almost as much as their counterparts in Hong Kong.

Salaries of Indian bankers and fund managers have been on the rise for several years but the rate began accelerating last year.

LOWER THAN HONG KONG

Experienced analysts in India now earn 2-4 million rupees a year, twice as much as they earned three years ago, but only a fraction of the compensation packages for senior analysts at major brokerage houses in Hong Kong, who make $400,000 to more than $1 million in some cases.

At the entry level, annual salaries in India have doubled to between 300,000 and 500,000 rupees in three years but are still far below Hong Kong, where the total compensation can be as much as $150,000-$175,000, industry players say.

Demand for analysts has soared in step with the stock market boom, which saw India's main index rise 73 percent in 2003, 13 percent in 2004, 42 percent in 2005 and nearly 47 percent in 2006. It is up 5 percent so far this year.

"For the requirement of five people in the research industry, the availability is only two people," said a senior analyst, who resigned as head of institutional equities at a brokerage to join another company last month.

India had just 302 active chartered financial analysts as of May 1, according to the CFA Institute.

"Everyone is looking for ready-made talent. There is very little fresh talent in the market today, so we have to make do with the available stock," said K. Sudarshan of EMA Partners, a placement agency.

The skills shortage is felt beyond the financial sector, even though India churns out 3 million university graduates a year. Software industry body NASSCOM says members face a shortage of qualified staff, pushing up wages by 10-15 percent a year.

Deepak Jasani of HDFC Securities says that to deal with the skills shortage, brokerages are offering higher salaries and employing fresh graduates and training them.

Some analysts say plum jobs are available only for sector specialists and some brokers complain analysts often fail to provide quality research to justify their cost.

"The industry is quite volatile, it is a high-risk, high-reward game. In good times you will get much higher salary and higher compensation, but when the times turn bad you may find it difficult to sustain your job as well," Infoline's Jain said.

Analysts say smaller brokerages are also challenged by Internet broking, which accounts for 12 percent of market volumes but is likely to rise to a quarter in three years.

"Wage inflation is on the rise but the commission rates are falling, so booking profitability for the second-tier and third-tier brokers is under pressure," said Man Financial's Joshi.

Commissions for trades over the Internet are much lower than traditional broking and competition is rising as many big firms are entering this market, brokers say.

"Internet broking has doubled each year since the last few years while the market has been growing at 20 percent. The impact of it is seen but will be felt much more as it begins to gather momentum now," Jain said.

$1=40.80 rupees

Manufacturing accounted for 24% of mass layoffs in May

In May, employers took 1,190 mass layoff actions, seasonally adjusted, as measured by new filings for unemployment insurance benefits during the month, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on June 22. Each action involved at least 50 persons from a single establishment; the number of workers involved totaled 119,089, on a seasonally adjusted basis. The number of mass layoff events decreased by 28 from the prior month, and the number of associated initial claims fell by 5,644. During May, 363 mass layoff events were reported in the manufacturing sector, seasonally adjusted, resulting in 48,849 initial claims.

Compared with the prior month, mass layoff activity in manufacturing decreased by 20 events, while initial claims increased by 5,076.

From January through May 2007, the total number of events (seasonally adjusted), at 6,201, and initial claims (seasonally adjusted), at 644,854, were higher than in January-May 2006 (5,555 and 577,696, respectively).

The national unemployment rate was 4.5 percent in May, unchanged from the prior month and down slightly from 4.6 percent a year earlier. Total non-farm payroll employment increased by 157,000 over the month and by 1.9 million over the year.

Industry Distribution (Not Seasonally Adjusted)The 10 industries reporting the highest numbers of mass layoff initial claims, not seasonally adjusted, accounted for 32 percent of the total initial claims in May. The industry with the highest number of initial claims was food service contractors with 5,236, followed by temporary help services with 5,080, and motion picture and video production with 3,470. Together, these three industries accounted for 16 percent of all initial claims due to mass layoffs during the month.

The manufacturing sector accounted for 24 percent of all mass layoff events and 31 percent of all related initial claims filed in May; a year earlier, manufacturing made up 22 percent of events and 28 percent of initial claims. In May 2007, the number of manufacturing claimants was highest in transportation equipment manufacturing (10,321, largely light truck and utility vehicle manufacturing and heavy duty truck manufacturing), followed by food manufacturing (2,617) and wood product manufacturing (1,823).

Administrative and waste services accounted for 13 percent of mass layoff events and 11 percent of initial claims in May, primarily from temporary help services. Accommodation and food services comprised 9 percent of events and 10 percent of initial claims filed over the month, with the majority of layoffs in food service contracting. Nine percent of all mass layoff events and related initial claims filed were from retail trade, mainly from general merchandise stores. Construction made up 10 percent of events and 7 percent of initial claims, mostly from the specialty trade contractors industry.

Read the full report and view all of the tables by clicking on the link below:

ftp://ftp.bls.gov/pub/news.release/mmls.txt

Pa. high on mass-layoff list — again

By Jane M. Von Bergen
INQUIRER STAFF WRITER
Once again, Pennsylvania was one of the top five states affected by mass layoffs in May, a fact partly attributable to its size.

In May, 5,412 initial claims for unemployment insurance were filed by people who had been let go in large-scale reduction-in-force layoffs of 50 or more people. There were 65 such mass layoffs.

However, the number is significantly reduced from April, when nearly 11,000 people filed initial claims in connection with 110 mass layoffs. A spokeswoman from Pennsylvania's Department of Labor and Industry said she isn't sure what accounted for the upsurge in April.

New Jersey was among five states with largest year-over-year increase in initial claims for unemployment insurance filed by people involved in mass layoffs. In May, 2,936 filed claims, up from 1,591 a year ago. New Jersey had a similar April spike, with 4,749 claims, based on 50 mass layoffs. The U.S. Labor Department reported that New Jersey had 31 mass layoff events in May.

Pennsylvania was also among the five states with the largest year-over-year increases in initial claims. Last May, there were 3,500 claims for 48 mass layoffs.

Other states with large year-to-year increases were Missouri, Kentucky and Wisconsin. California had the most claims due to mass layoffs, followed by Missouri, Pennsylvania, Kentucky and Michigan. The top five states accounted for nearly half of the mass layoff events.

Contact staff writer Jane M. Von Bergen at 215-854-2769 or jvonbergen@phillynews.com.

NEP Drawing to Close by End of June

Tight Labor Market Forces up Wages for Summer Jobs (Mannitoba)

Brazil registers record Employment growth

Google Will Open New Data Center in Iowa

Google Inc. will build a $600 million data center in western Iowa, as announced by Gov. Chet Culver last Tuesday according to Forbes .The purpose of this acquisition is to serve that current need and as well into the near future wherein the popular search engine company is expecting to need more spaces to accommodate their ever-growing computer database.

It will be housing the computers that the search engine will use for its services. What got them interested in the site was because of it being a sort of a crossroad for internet activity, according to Google.

Construction has already begun on a 55-acre site in Council Bluffs, across the Missouri River. The newest investment is expected to create about 200 jobs. This of course will generate income that is expected to be a really big help in the local economy. This alone is one of the big reasons why lawmakers and locals are excited to have the internet company invest in their local economy. Aside from the obvious employment of a lot of highly technical people, this single investment alone could help other support businesses as well.

As proof of the importance of having Google invests in their state, the politicians even passed a bill that would give the company a substantial tax exemption in regards to their considerable electrical and capital investment.This was all coordinated by Sen. Bill Dotzler who was excited to see Iowa attract a world-class company that could possibly bring more businesses to the state. He is hoping that by bringing Google to Iowa, other similar companies would follow suit. "I really think that this is just the start of these server-type businesses, and Google's decision to come to Iowa is probably going to lead to other server companies coming to Iowa," Sen Bill Dotzler tells Forbes.

This is of course the main goal of the lawmakers all along when they arranged the tax exempt for Google. All of these things are of course expected to generate the vicious cycle of having more and more world class companies investing in the local economy that will lead to even more companies attracted by the business-friendly tax environment. This in turn will lead to a big improvement of the businesses of local vendors and suppliers especially, which will promote even morethe attractiveness for other companies to follow suit. The popular internet company will enjoy its tax break through 2024 and then pay $65 million in taxes over the next 15 years.

Also, the company is very willing to help the local economy by using local vendors and suppliers if possible.

Skilled vacancies fell 0.8%: govt data

Skilled vacancies fell 0.8 per cent in June, the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) data shows.

Its skilled vacancies index in June was 99.7, 6.2 per cent lower than in June 2006.
The annual fall in the index was largely due to a 10.5 per cent fall in skilled trade vacancies.
Vacancies fell for the three broad occupations in June.

Professionals were down 1.5 per cent, associate professionals fell 4.4 per cent and trades were off 1.0 per cent.

Skilled vacancies for 12 occupational groups fell in June, while six rose.

The largest fall was for medical and science technical officers, which were down 9.4 per cent. Wood trades were down 9.3 per cent, and marketing and advertising professionals were 6.3 per cent lower.

The strongest increase was for science professionals, which were up 5.4 per cent. This was followed by electrical and electronic trades, which rose 2.0 per cent, while automotive trades were up 1.9 per cent.

The Northern Territory and three states recorded increases in skilled vacancies in June.
The strongest rise was in the NT, which were up 1.5 per cent, followed by Victoria, up 1.2 per cent, Queensland up 0.5 per cent and South Australia up 0.2 per cent.

Over the month, falls in skilled vacancies were recorded for NSW, down 3.8 per cent, while Western Australia fell 2.8 per cent and Tasmania declined 1.6 per cent.
Over the year to June, increases in skilled vacancies were recorded in Queensland, which rose 14.2 per cent, while in SA they were up 12.7 per cent, and rose 9.2 per cent in both Tasmania and the NT.

However, in the year to June, they fell 21 per cent in NSW, 17.1 per cent in Western Australia and 12.9 per cent in Victoria.

TODAY'S EDITORIAL: Good Job on Jobs

For critics of reforms and globalisation, OECD’s latest study of global employment trends could come as a shock. While there’s no disputing that India’s GDP growth rate has picked up in recent times, naysayers habitually complain that this is "jobless growth", resulting in profits for the capitalist class but no jobs for workers.

But the OECD report shows India to be a stellar performer on the job creation front. It generated 11.3 million net new jobs annually between 2000 and 2005. This is over 60 per cent more than the seven million new jobs created in China every year. There’s more good news. India generated half the jobs in the so-called BRIC nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China) and BRIC nations’ employment gains during 2000-05 were more than five times those of OECD, which represents a rich club of 30 developed nations.

That, incidentally, nails another myth which anti-globalisers like to propagate — that globalisation favours rich nations. While the study dispels the notion that reforms and globalisation have been bad for India, there are several areas of concern.

Employment generation in India has been rapid but it starts from a low base. India’s employment to population ratio was a mere 50.5 per cent in 2005. Moreover, data for China and India are presented for urban areas only, while 79 per cent of Indians are estimated to be working in the rural sector, where underemployment is pervasive. We must also note that India needs to run faster to stay at the same place.

While other BRIC nations have an almost stagnant labour force — Russia’s is falling — India has a pronounced youth bulge and needs to generate jobs for a growing labour force. The report finds that extra jobs generated with every 1 per cent growth in GDP — the elasticity of employment in relation to growth — are relatively low in China and India. In other words, India needs to grow at a minimum of 9 per cent to maintain the pace of job generation.

For most categories of workers in India, real wages did not grow significantly between 2000 and 2005. This needs to change. Reforms per se are not the problem, but the mess left by half-finished reforms can only be resolved by more reforms. Businesses must face less red tape when they set up or move in and out of sectors, and labour laws simply have to be relaxed to generate more employment. Opposition to the latter can be defused by extending generous social security benefits to all categories of labour, particularly casual workers and the unemployed. In other words, create a safety net. This is an area in which successive Indian governments have been hopelessly remiss.

Mexico, Mo., plant to close in October, layoff 153

Parker-Hannifin Corp. plans to close its Sporlan Valve Co. plant in Mexico, Mo., in October, and consolidate its operations in the firm's Washington, Mo., plant, spokesman Jim Cartwright said Tuesday.

The closure, meant to increase business efficiencies and save costs, will result in the layoff of 153 employees, according to Cartwright.

The Mexico plant manufactures thermostat valves for the heating and cooling industry.
While the plant is scheduled to officially close in October, Cartwright said Parker-Hannifin plans to begin phasing out jobs Aug. 18.

Cleveland-based Parker-Hannifin (NYSE: PH) acquired Sporlan in October 2004.

N.C. Unemployment Remains At 4.8 Percent In May

RALEIGH, N.C. -- North Carolina's unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.8 percent in May after rising in April for the first time in seven months.
New data released Friday by the state Employment Security Commission shows that employment increased by a thousand jobs during May and has risen by nearly 80,000 jobs to almost 4.1 million since May 2006.
The numbers come from seasonally adjusted data for non-farm industry employment.

The largest increase was in education and health services, which added 2,900 jobs in May. Government jobs decreased by 3,000.

Global Employment Outlook Survey: Optimism in Germany to continue, Hiring set to soften in Asia Pacific - Irish outlook weaker

By Finfacts TeamJun 12, 2007, 16:42


The Manpower Employment Outlook Survey released today revealed that third-quarter hiring is expected to be positive in all of the 27 countries and territories surveyed, with employers in Germany and Norway reporting their most optimistic hiring plans since the survey began in these countries in 2003, based on seasonally adjusted data.

Meanwhile, the Asia Pacific labor market is expected to cool from three months ago, with the exception of India, where employer demand has bounced back after a dip reported in the second quarter. In the U.S., job prospects are expected to hold firm in the next three months, but are softer compared to last year at this time.

The strongest third-quarter hiring prospects reported globally were in Singapore, Peru, India, Argentina, New Zealand, Australia, Norway, Costa Rica, Japan and Hong Kong. Meanwhile, employers in Italy reported the least optimistic hiring plans. Employers in 15 countries and territories are reporting weaker hiring plans compared to the second quarter; however, year-over-year those in 14 countries are reporting improved job prospects. The quarterly survey by Manpower is the world’s most extensive forward-looking employment survey, with interviews of nearly 52,000 employers worldwide.

"Hiring activity is generally healthy across all 27 of the countries and territories we survey, with Germany continuing to be the biggest story as the labor market continues its steady improvement. We are seeing a softer hiring pattern across Asia Pacific going into the third quarter, with the exception of India where employment prospects are set to improve,” said Jeffrey A. Joerres, Chairman & CEO of Manpower Inc.

“In the U.S., employers are expecting to maintain their current hiring pace, continuing their measured approach to adding staff only when needed,” Joerres added.

Elsewhere in the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region, job prospects are strongest in Norway, South Africa, the UK, Germany, Sweden and Switzerland, while Italian employers reported the weakest, but still positive, hiring expectations in the region. Irish employers expect to slow hiring considerably from the second quarter and last year, however, employers in eight European countries say they expect to increase the hiring pace from one year ago.

“Steady demand in the Transportation and Communications sector is helping drive continued momentum in the German labor market and throughout Europe, and Manufacturing employers in the region expect to boost hiring from one year ago,” said Joerres. “This is particularly evident in the Norwegian labor market where these two sectors are contributing to the strongest employment outlook for Norway since the survey began here four years ago.”

Of the six countries surveyed in the Americas, employers in Peru and Argentina are again the most optimistic about adding to their workforces, with Peruvian employers expecting a considerable increase in hiring compared to third quarter of 2006. The hiring pace is expected to be slightly weaker from one year ago in Canada, Costa Rica and the U.S.

“The good news in the U.S., Canada and Mexico is that job prospects should hold steady in the next three months, based on seasonally adjusted data. Mexican employers in the Agriculture, Wholesale & Retail and Manufacturing sectors are reporting record levels of optimism, but their U.S. counterparts are less enthusiastic about adding staff at this time,” said Joerres.

Employer hiring projections for the eight countries and territories surveyed across the Asia Pacific region are weaker when compared to the second quarter (but still positive), with the exception of India. The strongest outlooks were reported in Singapore, India, New Zealand and Australia. Employers in Taiwan expect to offer the fewest employment opportunities.

“The data shows that finding and keeping talent in Singapore remains a challenge for employers, as they struggle to hire skilled staff to keep up with demand. In contrast, Japanese employers in the Finance, Insurance and Real Estate sector anticipate the biggest slowdown after the active second quarter, when the bulk of the year’s hiring takes place in Japan,” said Joerres. “It should be no surprise that the strongest hiring expectations for India are found in the Services sector, where 49 percent of employers are telling us they will increase their payrolls in the third quarter.”

Ireland
Irish employers are reporting more conservative hiring plans moving into Quarter 3 2007, according to the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey (Ireland report). With seasonal variations removed from the data, Ireland’s Employment Outlook is +8%, indicating a positive hiring environment, with 15 percent of employers expecting to add to their payrolls. However, the Outlook is 11 percentage points weaker when compared to the previous quarter and 10 percentage points weaker when compared to the corresponding quarter last year.

“This quarter’s forecast was most likely influenced by the general election, with many employers adopting a wait-and-see approach to hiring for the next few months,” says Jason Kennedy, Managing Director of Manpower Ireland. “Notably, adjusted data reveals that employers in the Finance and Public sectors expect the weakest hiring pace since the survey was established in Ireland.”

Meanwhile, employers in the Mining & Quarrying sector anticipate the strongest hiring intentions for the third quarter. All five regions in Ireland report weaker, but still positive, hiring expectations when compared to the previous quarter.

Conducted quarterly, the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey measures employers’ intentions to increase or decrease their workforces over the forthcoming quarter, and is the most extensive, forward-looking employment survey in the world, gathering data from nearly 52, 000 employers across the globe each quarter.

For Quarter 3, 665 employers throughout Ireland were interviewed and asked “How do you anticipate total employment at your location to change in the next 3 months to the end of September 2007?” The Net Employment Outlook figure is derived by taking the percentage of employers anticipating an increase in hiring activity and subtracting from this the percentage expecting to see a decrease in employment in their location in the next quarter. The result of this calculation is the Net Employment Outlook.

“Although Ireland’s results indicate softer hiring patterns, the survey data still demonstrates a continued sense of optimism amongst employers in the general Irish labour market. The Outlook for the Mining and Quarrying sector is 18 percentage points stronger than last quarter with the Pharmaceutical sector also reporting steady hiring intentions,” says Kennedy.

Regional employment is expected to be strongest in Dublin (+17%). Employers in Connaught (+1%), however, report a 5 percentage point decrease quarter-over-quarter following a 14 percentage point decrease last quarter. Munster (+5%) employers, too, are less optimistic this quarter, with an Outlook 18percentage point weaker compared to three months ago. Meanwhile, employers in Ulster (+7%) indicate slightly weaker hiring plans from the previous quarter. The Outlook fell from +9% to +7%.

The least optimistic job prospects are reported by employers in the Finance/ Insurance/ Real Estate sector where the Outlook declines 22 percentage points quarter-over-quarter. This is the sector’s weakest Outlook since the Ireland survey began.

With an Outlook of +17%, employers in the Pharmaceutical sector anticipate a moderate improvement of 5 percentage points in quarter-over-quarter hiring activity.

Employers in Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing (12%) as well as the Construction sectors (7%) are both reporting minimal decreases of just 3 and 5 percentage points quarter-over-quarter.

Cadbury to Cut Jobs and Sell Beverage Unit

LONDON, June 19 — Cadbury Schweppes, the biggest candy maker in the world, said today that it planned to cut 7,500 jobs and sell the United States beverage unit that made Dr Pepper, Snapple and 7-Up to become more profitable.

Cadbury, which makes Trident gum and Dairy Milk chocolate, said it had received “expressions of interest” for the drinks unit without giving further details. Cadbury, which in March announced plans to split off its soft drinks business to focus on its candy operation, will eliminate 15 percent of the remaining jobs by 2011 to increase its margins, which have lagged behind those of rivals Hershey and Wm. Wrigley Jr.

Cadbury has received offers from at least three bidding groups that include the private equity firms Bain Capital Partners and Blackstone Group, and Cott, a Canadian company that makes private-label drinks for retailers like Wal-Mart Stores, according to people close to the company.

By focusing on its candy business, Cadbury aims to increase revenue up to 6 percent a year, raise its margins to about 15 percent from 10 percent, lift dividends and improve returns from the capital it invests, it said.

“We have to show we can keep growing the top line while improving margins,” Todd Stitzer, the chief executive, said.

Shares of Cadbury had underperformed those of its rivals after a number of mishaps over the last year at its confectionery unit that forced the recall of thousands of its chocolate products. But the shares started to recover this year, rising 28 percent as investors applauded the separation of the two businesses and Nelson Peltz, the shareholder advocate who pushed H. J. Heinz’s management into selling some assets, said he had amassed a 3 percent stake in the company.

This month, Cadbury expanded its candy business by agreeing to buy Intergum of Turkey for $450 million and a majority stake in Kandia-Excelent, a Romanian confection maker. It said it also planned to buy Sansei Foods Ltd., a Japanese maker of sweets. The sale of the American beverage unit, which also makes Canada Dry and Hawaiian Punch, would follow that of the European drinks business last year to Blackstone and Lion Capital for $2.2 billion. Following the separation, Cadbury will drop Schweppes from its name.

Cadbury’s American drinks business controls about 15 percent of the American market for carbonated soft drinks and ranks behind Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, which share about 74 percent of the $70 billion market, according to Beverage Digest.

Sunrise Announces Job Cuts

Switzerland's Sunrise says that it is to cut its workforce by some 6 percent, citing price pressures in the Swiss market. The company will be laying off 140 staff - mainly affecting employees with no direct customer contact.

Sunrise says that the Swiss telecommunications market is extremely competitive and in many areas largely saturated. Competition for customers is extremely tough and is ultimately controlled by price structures. These developments are leading to even more difficult market conditions than ever before. Cost pressure will continue to rise throughout the entire telecommunications industry, forcing companies to substantially increase their efficiency.

sunrise has worked in close cooperation with the Staff Committee and the "Gewerkschaft Kommunikation" to create a comprehensive layoff benefit plan. This package of measures will be largely identical to that which was unveiled during the restructuring phase in the spring of last year. At that time over 80% of affected employees were able to find new positions very quickly.

Only last year though, the company had recruited over 350 new staff.

N.C. unemployment remains at 4.8% in May

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - North Carolina's unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.8% in May after rising in April for the first time in seven months.

New data released today by the state Employment Security Commission shows that employment increased by a thousand jobs during May and has risen by nearly 80,000 jobs to almost 4.1 million since May 2006.

The numbers come from seasonally adjusted data for non-farm industry employment.

The largest increase was in education and health services, which added 2,900 jobs in May. Government jobs decreased by three thousand.

Compuware expects $21M in layoff costs

NEW YORK (AP) - Mainframe computer software maker Compuware Corp. expects to log $21 million in costs from the elimination of 245 jobs, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

In an 8-K filed with the SEC Friday, Compuware said the sum includes $16 million in severance-related costs and about $5 million in other costs. About $17 million of the total will lead to future cash expenditures, Compuware said.

The job eliminations, which were announced Monday, affect more than 3 percent of the company's work force and are meant to cut overall costs and make the company's operations more efficient, Compuware said.

Detroit-based Compuware said Monday it anticipates saving about $25 million each year as a result of the job eliminations.

Compuware shares added 2 cents to $11.87 in morning trading.

Indian Workers protest layoff policy

Itanagar, June 14: Workers in Arunachal Pradesh are anything but willing to shake hands with the government on its “golden handshake” policy, approved by the cabinet recently.

“We protest the government’s policy of retrenchment. It speaks volumes of the government’s apathy towards the labour force,” the president of the union, J. Sonam, said today,

Public works department and urban development minister Nabam Tuki said labourers with less than 15 years’ experience would be paid 15 days’ salary for each year and compensation of Rs 2,000 for the current year. The fate of the labourers with experience above 15 years would depend on a directive from a court of law.

Tuki said the cabinet had decided to implement the policy to reduce a financial burden of around Rs 107 crore, which is what the government annually pays as wages to over 30,000 labourers.

But Sonam complained that the committee which decided the compensation for retrenchment never thought it necessary to take the workers’ union into confidence.

He said the union conducted a survey in Lohit, Changlang, West Siang, Upper Subansiri and Lower Subansiri districts and a list of workers, including some with more than 15 years’ experience, was also compiled.

The government’s decision allegedly came before the completion of the assessment process.

The government did not implement the revised wages recommended by the labour department but stuck to its practice of paying low wages since August 2006.

The wages paid were Rs 65, Rs 60 and Rs 55 for skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled labourers in area-1 category against the payment of Rs 76.08, Rs 72.72 and Rs 66 respectively, the union claimed.

The union is planning a demonstration against the cabinet’s decision at the Solung playground in Itanagar on Sunday.

Bus plant at Conway says up to 500 face layoff

Associated Press - June 14, 2007 8:24 AM ET

CONWAY, Ark. (AP) - The Navistar International Corporation bus assembly plant in Conway has told its workers that up to 500 of them could lose their jobs by August due to a decline in demand.

Spokesman Roy Wiley says more stringent emission standards caused a slowdown in orders. Before the new standards were put in place, Wiley says school districts increased orders while they could still buy buses equipped with less costly diesel engines.

Wiley said it is not known how many of the plant's 1,240 workers will lose their jobs.

IC Corporation, which is owned by Warrenville, Illinois-based Navistar, gave a federally-required 60-day notice on Monday that the layoffs were coming.

School buses have been manufactured in Conway since the 1930s. Companies that preceded IC Corp. included American Transportation and Ward Bu.

The bus plant is the largest manufacturer in Conway. Local officials say they hope other area manufacturers will be able to absorb any workers laid off at the bus plant.

Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Champion lays off 137

By STEPHANIE HARRIS THOMAS Hope StarPublished: Tuesday, June 12, 2007 3:22 PM

One hundred, thirty-seven people found themselves unexpectedly out of work at the end of the day Friday. Officials of Champion parts are calling the layoff, “unexpected,” and say there's no real indication whether those workers will be recalled.Champion Parts, a Hope company that produces vehicle and marine parts, informed employees of the decision in a letter with paychecks Friday. The letter indicated that the company had experienced an unforeseeable drastic drop in customer orders.Employees received the letter from Chief Executive Officer and President Jerry Bragiel. Vice President and Chief of Finance, Kevin Cain, for Champion Parts provided a copy of the letter to the Hope Star.

“This letter is to inform you that it has become necessary to reduce our workforce due to unforeseeable business circumstances. Champion Parts has experienced an unexpected drastic drop in customers' orders and cannot continue at current production levels.“I regret to inform you that you have been placed on indefinite layoff, effective with the end of the workshift today, June 8,2007. If business improves, the company expects to begin calling back employees.”Cain said no violence had occurred as a result of the notification, but Champion did have security guards over the weekend. He said 187 employees remain at work at the local facility. When asked if the employees who were laid off had been with the company for some time or if they were relatively new he said, “It was a combination of both.”

Cain said the drop in customers orders was unexpected.“We had been noticing for past few weeks in customer orders,” Cain said.When asked if a large supplier had cancelled orders, he said, “We have the same customer base that we've always had.”

AvtoVAZ Mulls Over 5,000 Layoff

Russian car maker AvtoVAZ has announced redundancy at the factory, planning to lay off more than 5,000 people, or 5 percent of the workers. 75 million rubles that AvtoVAZ hopes to save on the cut will be used to raise wages by 5 percent.

Kommersant got hold of copy of a letter from AvtoVAZ Vice-President Alexander Golovaty to the group’s President Vladimir Artyakov, suggesting making 5,268 people redundant before October 1. The total number of employees at the factory is to be cut by 4.8 percent.

The redundancy move will be saving AvtoVAZ up to 75 million rubles every month, according to Alexander Golovaty. The money could be used to raise wages by 5 percent in the second half of the year to comply with a collective agreement between the plant’s management and trade union. Asking to consider the proposal, Mr. Golovaty notes in the letter that the management is now going to lay off 1,841 people, which will help to raise wages by as little as 2 percent.AvtoVAZ confirmed reports about the redundancies, but declined to give the exact number of future layoffs.

In the meantime, trade unions don’t sound disturbed by the news. “People are lining up to the plant’s HR to leave AvtoVAZ” because of low wages, a trade union leader told Kommersant.Industry experts say that redundancy is an unpopular but efficient move. With 100,000 workers in workshops AvtoVAZ now produces some 730,000 cars a year while 130,000 people at Renault plants manufacture 2.5 million cars.

www.kommersant.com

Take-Two to lay off employees

Take-Two to lay off employees
'Grand Theft Auto' publisher reorganizing
By BEN FRITZ

"Grand Theft Auto" publisher Take-Two Entertainment will lay off a "meaningful" number of its 2,100 employees as part of a restructuring plan under new management, the company said Monday.

News came as it reported a net loss of $51.2 million on $205.4 million in the quarter ended April 30. While its loss was about even, revenue fell 22% from a year ago.

Decline derives in large part from strong sales for "Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion" last year.
Shareholders elected a new board, which installed new management earlier this year following an accounting scandal and backdated stock options that resulted in former CEO Ryan Brant pleading guilty to falsification of business records.

Though it still has several successful franchises, most notably "GTA," Take-Two must make big steps to regain its financial footing, its new leaders say. Reorg calls for Take-Two to consolidate and realign many of its business functions, including international operations, West Coast ops and label and studio administration.

"While the decisions we are announcing today were difficult and will unfortunately require employee layoffs, we believe these necessary actions will improve the financial and operational performance of Take-Two, leading to greater value for our shareholders," said new CEO Ben Feder.
Company plans to release "Grand Theft Auto IV" in October.

Shares of Take-Two were up 1% in after-hours trading following the announcement.

(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

Illinois layoffs 2007

The following future closures and mass layoffs were reported in Illinois.
· AI Technologies is closing down at 666 S. Vermont St. in Palatine on June 25 affecting 50 employees.
· Akzo Nobel Surface Chemistry LLC is closing at 8201 W. 47th St. in McCook on June 30 affecting 51 employees.
· Blyth Homescents International sold its division at 99 Touhy Ave. in Des Plaines and is closing down on June 29 affecting 75 employees.
· Catholic Charities of Chicago laying off at 651 West Lake St. in Chicago on June 30 affecting 157 employees.
· J & L Industrial Supply is laying off at 2701 S. Busse Road in Elk Grove Village on July 27 affecting 52 employees.
· Option One Mortgage is closing at 3800 Golf Road in Rolling Meadows on July 14 affecting 52 employees.
· Target Store is relocating its store at 21600 S. Cicero Ave. in Matteson and laying off 115 employees on July 24.
· Thresholds Rehabilitation Industries is closing at 1550 W. Carroll in Chicago on June 30 affecting 73 employees.
· Westell Technologies Inc. is laying off at 750 N. Commons Drive in Aurora on 7/31/07 affecting 251 employees.
· Kantar Operations is closing at 4705 44th St., Suite 1, in Rock Island on June 23 affecting 252 employees.
· Exel is closing at 1263 Windham Parkway in Romeoville on July 15 affecting 57 employees.
· First Student Inc. is closing at 900 Sak Drive in Crest Hill on June 30 affecting approximately 400 employees.

Florida layoffs

The following future closures and mass layoffs were reported in Florida.
· Oceanfront Hotel plans to layoff 88 employees at 3200 N. Ocean Drive in Singer Island on Aug. 10
· Badcock Home Furniture & More plans to layoff 39 employees at300 NW 4th Ave. in Mulberry on June 29.
· Rite Aid plans to layoff 49 employees at7320 Bryan Dairy Road in Largo within the next year.
· DiVosta Building Corp. plans to layoff 71 employees at10385 Ironwood Road in Palm Beach Gardens on July 31.
· Sara Lee Bakery plans to layoff 99 employees at its warehouse at1820 W. 15th St. in Panama City on July 28.

Arizona layoffs

The following future closures and mass layoffs were reported in Arizona.
· SkillSoft Corp. is permanently laying off 153 employees at 14624 N. Scottsdale Road in Scottsdale between now and Aug. 15.
· Motorola Mobile Devices is permanently laying off 79 employees at 2501 S. Price Road in Chandler starting July 27 and concluding by Aug. 10.

Liz Claiborne

Retailer Liz Claiborne plans to reveal initiatives of a strategic review of operations on July 11th. The review is in light of disappointing first quarter results, which included a 65% decline in earnings. Cutbacks are speculated to result in the loss of as many as 1,700 jobs, 10% of Liz Claiborne's existing workforce. Another initiative may result in selling off a business unit(s) or brand(s); aside from its own brand name, Liz Claiborne operates stores and holds several brands including Juicy Couture (27 stores), Lucky Brand (138 stores), Kate Spade (23 stores), Mexx (4 stores), Sigrid Olsen (55 stores), Laundry by Shelli Segal (two stores), Dana Buchman (four stores), Ellen Tracy and Emma James. By: Sasha M. Pardy.

Prudential Financial

Prudential Financial Inc. plans to discontinue its institutional equity research, sales and trading business known as Prudential Equity Group. The decision affects the equity research operations throughout the U.S. including offices in New York, Washington, DC, San Francisco, Kansas City, Chicago, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Atlanta and Boston. The move will eliminate 420 jobs at 13 locations worldwide. Prudential Equity has its headquarters at One New York Plaza in New York, where Prudential leases more than 490,000 square feet.

Whirlpool To Layoff 730 Employees In Tennessee

RTTNews) - As part of the company's ongoing comprehensive worldwide plan to strengthen and extend marketplace position, Whirlpool Corp. on Thursday, announced changes to its air control and cooking platforms in North America. The changes will result in the elimination of 730 jobs at two of its plants that manufacture dehumidifiers and air purifiers and cooking ranges in Tennessee.

Whirlpool, the world's largest appliance maker is negotiating a licensing agreement with potential global partners to manufacture, market and distribute air control products that will carry the Whirlpool brand name. The company remains optimistic that the ongoing global initiative will bring new opportunities for the Whirlpool brand presence in air control.

Benton Harbor, Michigan-based Whirlpool will wind up its LaVergne, Tennessee manufacturing facility, which manufactures dehumidifiers and air purifiers after the 2007 air control season. Following the phase-out, about 330 jobs will be eliminated.

The company said that it would fulfill all consumer requirements for the 2007 air control season before production goes on the wane at the LaVergne plant. Beginning next year, Whirlpool will expand product offerings and increase services through the new provider.

The company is also optimizing production capacity and adjusting its workforce levels to optimize production capabilities within its cooking manufacturing facilities and platforms in North America. As part of its comprehensive worldwide plan, Whirlpool will move its single cavity freestanding range units built at Cleveland, Tennessee manufacturing facility to Whirlpool manufacturing locations in Tulsa, Oklahoma and Celaya, Mexico.

The relocation will result in the layoff of approximately 400 positions at the Cleveland site by the end of 2008, mainly through normal attrition and the reduction of temporary positions. The company said that it has not yet decided on the number of jobs to be created at Tulsa and Celaya.

Commenting on the changeover, Marise Kumar, Whirlpool vice president, Business Strategy and Core Competencies said, "This future transition will offer our customers expanded product offerings and services."

WHR is currently down $1.35 or 1.21% trading at $110.42 on a volume of 157,600 shares.

HK :People show high optimism about job market: survey

EU to Crack Down on Employers Hiring Illegal Aliens

Chromos Plans to Restructure

Job Opportunities in China

Industrial Employment Reveals Decentralization in Brazil

Report from the US Labor Secretary about the May 2007 employment numbers

Teen Unemployment now 3.5 Times National Average

Employment data augurs well for job seekers

By Jeannine Aversa

WASHINGTON — If you're thinking about looking for a job, this might be the time to polish your résumé.

The news is good if your field is health care, education, accounting, engineering, Internet-related activities, banking, food services or government.

But be cautious about looking in manufacturing or retailing, which cut positions last month. Construction jobs were flat. Those pockets of weakness mostly reflected problems related to the troubled housing and automotive industries.

All told, the employment picture provided by the Labor Department on Friday showed job creation bounced back, with payrolls growing by 157,000 last month. That was an improvement over the 80,000 new jobs generated in April, the fewest in 2 1/2 years.

The overall unemployment rate held steady at 4.5 percent, low by historical standards.

"I think for job seekers the climate is pretty good right now, but it does vary," said Mark Vitner, an economist at Wachovia. "But I think companies are looking at each new hire more carefully than in the past.

No question about that," he added.

The 157,000 jobs generated in May is good — not fantastic— but it does bode well for the hoped-for economic rebound in the current April-to-June quarter, Vitner and other analysts said.

Many economists believe the economy in the current quarter is growing at a pace of about 2.3 percent. Others think economic growth will be better — topping 3 percent. Either way, it would mark a considerable pickup from the anemic 0.6 percent growth rate registered in the January-to-March quarter, the worst in more than four years.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and his colleagues also are betting economic growth will perk up.

In another hopeful sign for the anticipated rebound, factories gained ground last month.

The Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing index rose to 55 in May, the best showing in a year. A reading above 50 indicates growth, while a reading below 50 indicates contraction.

On Wall Street, investors also were encouraged by the latest batch of economic data. The Dow Jones industrials gained 40.47 points to close at 13,668.11, the index's 26th record close for the year.

In the labor report, the performance was better than economists were expecting. They were forecasting that employers would add 135,000 jobs in May. They did, however, say they believed the overall unemployment rate would stay at 4.5 percent.

The main reason the employment climate has been holding well through the economy's nearly yearlong period of sluggishness is because most of the weakness has been concentrated in the housing and automotive industries. Those problems spots, thus far, haven't spread widely through the rest of the job market.

That being said, those pockets of weakness are surely being felt.

In the first five months of this year, job growth averaged 133,000 a month, compared with 189,000 a month in 2006. And, economists do expect the jobless rate will creep up this year, perhaps rising to as high as 5 percent by year end.

Workers saw modest wage gains.Average hourly earning rose to $17.30 in May, a 0.3 percent increase from the previous month.

Dell plans 10 percent work force layoff

NEW YORK, NY, United States (UPI) -- Personal computer company Dell has announced plans for a 10 percent layoff of its work force over the next year.

The anticipated cuts, the company`s first since 2001, would affect about 8,800 people, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday.

The announcement came from Michael Dell, founder and chief executive, who is trying to turn the company around. He said layoffs were difficult but, 'We know these actions are critical.'

In preliminary first-quarter earnings, Dell posted flat net income and 2.8 percent growth from a year earlier.

Michael Dell didn`t say how much the layoffs would save but one estimate set a figure of $600 million.

Payrolls rebound in May

U.S. nonfarm payrolls increased by a better-than-expected 157,000 in May, the Labor Department reported Friday.

The jobless rate held steady at 4.5%

The 157,000 increase in payrolls was slightly above the 150,000 expected by economists.