HP STARTS U.S. LAYOFFS

[Anonymous]

http://www.gazettetimes.com/articles/2008/08/20/news/community/5aaa05_hplayoffs.txt
Corvallis HP layoffs start
Layoffs
at Hewlett-Packard’s Corvallis site started this week, sources told the
Gazette-Times on Tuesday, in line with cuts in the company’s inkjet
printing division that the company calls its “Print 2.0
transformation,” with more change in store for next year.HP would not
confirm reports of job reductions in Corvallis, but company spokesman
Dave Berman released a statement that did support news that some cuts
were coming in its imaging and printing group (IPG), which has a strong
presence and history here.“The realignment of IPG’s business entails
shifting resources from slower growing businesses to new business
opportunities,” according to the statement. “In some cases, parts of
IPG’s business will experience reductions while investments will be
made in high growth segments of the business.”

The company’s
inkjet printing technology was developed by Corvallis engineers in the
mid-1980s.Sources told the Gazette-Times months ago that HP managers
planned to shut down one of three silicon wafer fabrication facilities
at the Corvallis site and that 35 percent to 45 percent of the 850
employees who work in the fabs were to be laid off.

Those
figures indicate as many as 300 jobs in jeopardy. HP has never
officially confirmed any news of job cuts here, although sources say
more changes are on the horizon.employees in the Corvallis and
Vancouver, Wash., information technology departments have been warned
that the company plans to consolidate its IT workers in Austin, Texas,
by the end of next summer.That move will affect a total of 115
engineers who will be asked to relocate to central Texas starting in
March.On Tuesday, HP announced its quarterly revenues rose 10 percent
to $28 billion, ahead of Wall Street expectations of $27.43 billion.
Revenues for the company’s imaging and printing group grew by 3 percent
year over year, to $7 billion.

On the flip side, profits from
consumer printers slipped 14 percent compared to last year, and
commercial printing equipment dropped 5 percent over the same time
period.In a conference call announcing the company’s quarterly results,
Chief Financial Officer Cathie Lesjak said HP has shipped 2 percent
fewer printers when compared to last year in a “tough” printing
market.“Within IPG, we are focused on reducing our costs with ongoing
initiatives to improve supply chain efficiency and lower product
costs,” she said.

The Corvallis-Benton Chamber Coalition geared
up assistance programs for displaced workers when rumors began flying
in May that some job cuts were imminent.Local chamber organizers said
they have not received word from the company about this round of
layoffs, as they had during earlier reductions here.“We’re always
looking for people who are coming out,” said Mysty Rusk, Chamber
president. “We think we can place any qualified technical person who
comes out.”

The disconnect between HP and the Chamber comes
after Corvallis site managers dropped membership in the group this
spring as part of a plan the company said was meant to focus on broader
business alliances.The decision resulted in a loss of an anticipated
$16,000 per year the chamber had received from HP in support of city
economic development programs and chamber dues, just more than 3
percent of the chamber’s total membership dues.

Hewlett-Packard
employed about 6,000 people in Corvallis as recently as 1996, mainly in
its inkjet printer division. That number dropped to about 2,500 in 2007
as the company continued to move production overseas and reduce
employee costs through buyouts and early retirement.Current employee
numbers remain guesses, however, as HP has declined to discuss those
figures here or at any other site for years.

[Author]

August 21, 2008 at 5:07 PM