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Benefits February 6, 2009
Eddie Bauer Suspends Match
February 6, 2009 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - As have a
number of other companies, Eddie Bauer has announced it is
suspending 401(k) match contributions for 2009 to cut
costs.
Reported by Rebecca Moore
Tom Helton, the company’s senior vice president of human resources, said the company is still considering other ways to seek savings on benefits, according to the Puget Sound Business Journal. The match suspension is in addition to job cuts and salary freezes.
According to a news release on the company’s Web site, it is eliminating an aggregate 193 positions in the company’s corporate headquarters in Seattle, its information technology center in Chicago, a distribution center in Columbus and a call center in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada. The job cuts represent an aggregate of approximately 15% of the non-retail staff.
The announcement said Eddie Bauer is also reducing the size of its Board of Directors and overall Board compensation, representing a cash savings of 40% – 50%.
Neil Fiske, President and Chief Executive Officer, has volunteered to reduce his salary by 10% for the remainder of the year.