Saks, Neiman Marcus to lay off hundreds

Two of the nation’s premier luxury department stores are going to cut hundreds of jobs as they struggle to endure a freeze in consumer spending.

Saks Inc. (NYSE: SKS) said late Thursday that it was cutting 1,100 in-store and corporate support jobs, or about 9 percent of its work force, eliminating merit-based wage increases and suspending matching contributions to employee 401(k) plans for at least a year. On Wednesday, Neiman Marcus said it was cutting 375 jobs, or 2.3 percent of its work force.