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Investing October 5, 2004
Job Cuts Increase in September
October 5, 2004 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - For the third
straight month, the number of announced job cuts has
increased, and now stands at over 107,000 for
September.
Reported by Kip McDaniel
Outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc., in its monthly report, has announced that the September cuts to the workforce were up 45% from August . The total number, standing at 107,863 cuts for the month, is also 41% higher than the total from last September.
The September figure is the largest seen since January, when over 117,000 jobs were cut. The September figures bring the third quarter cuts up to 251,685, 19.9% higher than the previous quarter and 4% higher then the third quarter in 2003.
Over 724,000 job cuts have been announced in 2004 to date. However, this nine-month figure is lower then the total of the first three quarters in 2003.
Adding to the dower outlook is the bleak employer hiring announcement numbers. Only 16,166 new job openings were announced in September. In August, 132,105 new jobs were announced.
Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc. attributes a large portion of the job cuts to the computer, transportation, telecommunications, and consumer products industries. These four industries alone account for 56.6% of total job cuts for September.