For anyone working in the tech industry:

[Fleshdancer]

I just discovered this site that tracks all of the major layoffs in the tech industry and thought many people here might be interested in checking it out. It tracks the company, what country the layoffs are in, when it was reported, and a link to the news site that reported it.

http://www.techcrunch.com/layoffs/


Unisys: 1,300
Western Digital: 2,500
Sony: 8,000
AT&T Part 2: 2,001
AT&T Part 1: 9,999
Adobe Systems: 600
Sun Microsystems: 5,000
BT: 9,999
Motorola: 3,000
Xerox: 3,000
Dell: 8,900

The list goes on and on and on...

:(

[physioex]

1. So what's the deal with Microsoft?

Are layoffs coming this month? And how much?

[MadMaddie]

3. That's what I have heard .....I live in the Seattle area and that's

what's going around.

[physioex]

21. Heh...

So do I, :) that's why I am also curious.......

[gristy]

5. 15,000 Jan 15

http://news.cnet.com/8301-10805_3-10130165-75.html

[physioex]

22. That would be devestating to the area. EOM

:(

[Fleshdancer]

6. interestingly enough, that's what I was researching when I found this site...

The 15K job cut is still a rumor and hasn't been confirmed as far as I know. :shrug:

My bet is that the number is half that and the 15K number was floated in order to make the real layoff figures sound good in comparison. :tinfoilhat:

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

17. all I have seen is an "analrapist" saying microsoft SHOULD cut jobs

everything else is fruit of that tree,

analrapist, its an Arrested Development joke:

[1776Forever]

28. Microsoft planning big layoffs for January? - Article link.....

Microsoft planning big layoffs for January?
Posted by Jonathan Skillings

http://news.cnet.com/8301-10805_3-10130165-75.html

Mark January 15 in your calendar: Rumors of layoffs at Microsoft peg that as the day the bad news will come.

The latest to report on the possibility of layoffs at the software giant is the blog Fudzilla, which puts the number of job cuts at 15,000, or nearly 17 percent of Microsoft's worldwide operations. The January 15 date is a week before Microsoft's second-quarter earnings report, scheduled for January 22.

......

And this article way back in 2005:

Microsoft steps up move into China
May 12, 2005

http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200505/12/eng20050512_184689.html

US software behemoth Microsoft made its first acquisition in China and brought its MSN formally into the country, in a push to accelerate its entry into the local Chinese market.

Microsoft said yesterday that its MSN unit had formed a joint venture Shanghai MSN Network Communications Technology Co Ltd with Shanghai Alliance Investment Ltd (SAIL).

Chuan Luo, MSN regional director for China, said the joint venture will be a 50-50 entity between the two companies, but declined to reveal the investment volume of the firm.

SAIL is owned by the Shanghai municipal government and is also the partner of Microsoft's first software service joint venture in China in 2002.

Luo said that although China is the 41st market that MSN has entered, it will become an important part of MSN's global operations.

........

Notice this government envolment - hmmmm - isn't this what is happening here in the U.S.?

"SAIL is owned by the Shanghai municipal government"

What's next?

[MadMaddie]

2. Remeber when * said that IT was the industry that was going to

carry this country forward. He insisted that we get away from Manufacturing....well that has worked out great for us hasn't it?

If you look at the companies that are listed most of these companies sell services/goods. If the population has no money to buy those services/goods then.......Another great Repug short sighted plan....

[backscatter712]

7. Now all those jobs are off to India.

I'm a computer programmer that up until May last year, made a high-five-figures salary and had plenty of money to pay all my bills, buy toys, put a little away.

Let's just say I'm glad I put a little away, because now I've been unemployed for seven months, the job market is tighter than a frog's ass, and I'm relying on that savings on top of unemployment benefits to keep bills paid and a roof over my head.

This downturn had better not last much longer. It used to be that just mentioning I had a degree in computer science and a little experience programming got recruiters begging me to go to a new job. Now, the same qualifications get me lots of doors slammed in my face, a lot of statements such as "We hired someone more experienced." or "There might be some room for you in level 1 tech support, but I wish you had more certifications..."

[CoffeeCat]

11. Just sending some sparkly light and good vibes...

...your way.

My husband is a major geek, and I have a soft spot in my heart for other geeks.

I'm glad you socked some savings away and that you are staying afloat.

I'm polishing my resume this week and looking for a job too. Maybe we'll all end up working at Quick Trip or Piggly Wiggly.

Just wanted to let you know that I'm wishing you the best.

My husband's tech job is teetering on the brink, so I certainly understand.

You are not alone.

[MadMaddie]

15. I hope that you find something soon

I think we as individuals and groups need to look at our tech skills and see how we can use them to revitalize our manufacturing industries in the US. I know we are capable of doing it but where to start....

Yea, I am in IT also and this month I will find out if I have a job or not along with my coworkers.

[Fleshdancer]

23. jeez, I didn't realize how bad it's getting for programmers

After reading your post, I did a quick search on the various programming/developer job posting boards I use to browse (years ago) and there's not much out there.

Why type of programmer are you?

[backscatter712]

24. Heavy Linux-head.

Windows doesn't do much for me - I know Linux pretty much in & out, I've done a good bit of C & C++ in the past, and in my last job, I programmed in Ruby for a living. Right now, to keep busy, I've been dabbling in web development & such and playing around with PHP and MySQL and such.

I guess I'll just have to wait until the job market improves...

[riverdale]

35. I hear you

I lost my job just before Christmas, and there really isn't much of anything out there. Good luck.

[Double T]

4. More and more and more layoffs to come.

These are sad and desperate times for employees in all sectors.

[thrift_store_angel]

8. Interesting

BMC cut 350 jobs on Dec 6th. No wonder they can't find my freakin payment.

[CoffeeCat]

9. My husband works for an Internet Service Provider...

...they provide broadband Internet services, and very high-end, customized Internet service--mainly to businesses.

The company has a few offices, with the main hubs in Las Vegas, Phoenix and Miami.

I don't have to tell you that we're scared shitless.

I'm a stay-at-home mom, who is planning on going back into the work force after being away for 8 years.

I'm sure I'll have no problem finding a job in this economy--after being out of the work force for 8 years. :eyes: :scared:

This is downright scary. Who can live like this? One minute you're in the suburbs watching your flat-panel--like the
rest of the lemmings. The next you're in complete dire straights.

[IDemo]

10. This list doesn't include contractors

There have been a number of layoffs here by contractors for the tech company where I work.

[Fleshdancer]

12. I wonder if you can submit that information to this site as a tip?

Including laid off contractors makes sense considering there are so many in the tech industry. It also seems like contractor layoffs are under reported in the media. If true, then the American people aren't given the whole picture.

[DBoon]

13. techn workers are the perfect employees

intelligent, hard working, ambitious, willing to invest their own time and effort to educating themselves, and *non union*

So what's the excuse for these layoffs?

[Greyhound]

29. Somebody somewhere will do it cheaper.

It doesn't matter if quality suffers because MBAs are running the industry and don't understand what we do anyway, so as long as the app does 'something' it is good enough for them.

Of course this will lead to disaster, but it makes this quarter's numbers look better, and that is the only criteria.
:grr:

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

36. Putting aside your comments on tech employees...

...one of the major reasons is that salaries make up a truly enormous proportion of the expenditures of many tech companies. When your company's only physical capital is a random office building with some computers and cubicles (as opposed to big factories, a distribution network, etc.) there isn't a hell of a lot that can be cut, save for salary and benefits.

[Wickerman]

14. reminds me of the old days and F*ckedcompany.com

the ultimate deathpool for the tech industry in the late 90's. Once the web world "streamlined" it rightfully went away, but damn, it was insightful while it lasted. Nice insider views of why companies went belly up, etc. Would love to see some examination from the internals why these companies are hemorrhaging.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

34. There are several factors driving it.

For one thing, there's the falloff in consumer spending and the various problems already present in the retail industry. That's hurting companies that make consumer electronics, components for consumer electronics, PC software for the home, etc.

The other big factor is what's happening in the b-to-b sector. A lot of companies (tech and otherwise) are looking to improve cash flow at the moment, and one of the big ways of doing that (other than layoffs) is cancelling or scaling down IT projects. This hurts the likes of Oracle and Microsoft quite a bit. A lot of corporate IT managers are being asked, "do we really need to do this upgrade now?" And the answer, if you want to keep your job, is going to be "no."

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

16. Huge layoffs are coming where my girlfriend works

They put out a voluntary package before Christmas but she was turned down when she tried to take it, which means she will be left behind to clean up the mess after the massive downsizing. She is already feeling the survivor guilt.

She is already cleaning up the mess from a disastrous outsourcing arrangement with a company in Texas who it turns out is completely incompetent. It was supposed to expedite prototyping but instead just leaves them spending even more time as each time as they first have to figure out if a bug is a result of manufacturing error or not. A good third of the boards coming from Texas can’t even be powered on.

I suspect between losing much of her team and the prototype outsourcing disaster she will just quit.

[OhioChick]

18. Getting a college degree doesn't mean jack-shit anymore.

K&R

[Neshanic]

19. Adobe 600? That should cover all of North America.

[ChromeFoundry]

20. I'm sure the list will get longer in 2009. n/t

[alfredo]

25. What computer companies will survive this shakeout?

[Posteritatis]

26. 9,999 and 2,001? Those are weirdly specific numbers (nt)

[Fleshdancer]

30. My guess is they didn't want the headlines to say 12,000

I thought those numbers were odd too.

[ihavenobias]

27. To the greatest. n/t

[ravencalling]

31. Layoffs - my take

Companies forced into layoffs is one thing. Companies that use it as a first line of defense are the companies that you need to avoid. When you layoff the workforce you have lost your key talent and business experience. Not something that can be replaced easily or quickly. We have all experienced the sucky fucked up customer service from companies that outsourced, and who has not had the frustrating experience of relying on online assistance where you cannot even speak to a human being? It is a double slap in the face when you are paying money for such service.

So when companies layoff - then look for a concurrent drop in product quality and customer service.

In today's economy, if you are going to spend money on a product and expect customer service, you need the most bang for your buck if at all possible. You are not going to get it when you do business with companies that have just had major layoffs.

[ravencalling]

32. Oh and to add to that...

If you think that upper management who have not been laid off are the companies talent then you have another thing coming. They just get fed the details from the grunt workers that know the business inside and out.

[Romulox]

33. How in hell are those guys going to make the payments on their Toyotas???? nt

[Prophet 451]

37. I know, scared

The company I work for was brought out by Fox last year so I'm exceedingly nervous right now.

(and in case anyone's wondering: I didn't resign when we were brought out because I have a long-term mental illness (severe clinical depression). It doesn't affect my work but it does mean a massive number of people won't employ me).