Amid the gloomy economic news, this news item may not received much national or international attention. For the Hershey Company workers, it is a diaster:
It is a bad news for some Microsoft employees. Five thousand Microsoft positions will be eliminated. Some of those jobs will be terminated immediately:
It is a small news item that may seem typical of the economic climate. Thousands of Los Angeles teachers face the possibility of a job loss:
Another Friday pay day and, unfortunately, another friend has received a layoff notice. With large companies like Yahoo, there is some warning. The publicity in the press alerts employees that their position in the company may terminated soon.
One of the major concerns in this economy is losing one’s job - and subsequent health insurance coverage. There are some federal programs that may help:
For those who have a National Public Radio (NPR) habit, it is not good news. The economic woes have reached NPR and there will be staff layoffs:
Google may not be immune. There are rumour floating that there are proposed job cuts at Google. And some of those jobs may be gone already:
In a move to trim its budget and adjust to the economic situation, Southwest Airlines is reducing the number of scheduled flights in its operating system by approximately two hundred:
“…The airline traditionally trims the number of flights it operates during the first quarter, when travel demand drops after the holidays. The cuts this year “are a little steeper than usual,” said Chris Mainz, a spokesman for the Dallas-based carrier.
Still, he said the airline hasn’t changed its overall forecast for its 2009 capacity. Gary Kelly, Southwest’s chief executive, recently told analysts that the airline may not grow at all during the year.”
link: Southwest Airlines will cut 200 flights from winter schedule
What is noticeable in this announcement is that Southwest Airlines has not indicated any job reductions. The air carrier appears to be attempting to reduce costs while keeping its staff employed. Kudos to Southwest Airlines - the traveller should reward the airline for this type of commitment to its employees during rough economic times.
Catherine Forsythe
