Continue reading Yahoo! Lays Off 600 Employees

Yahoo! Lays Off 600 Employees originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 14 Dec 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Automatic Data Processing's (ADP) September private sector employment report -- which came in at a worse-than-expected loss of 39,000 jobs -- is not a data point that investors should ignore. That said, investors need to retain a proper perspective regarding the metric.

Institutional investors, public policy makers, and economists monitor the ADP report primarily because it's the last, monthly, national job tally before the U.S. Department of Labor's monthly, non-farm, payroll report -- the nation's best and most comprehensive survey of labor market conditions, called the Employment Situation.

Continue reading ADP's Private Employment Report: Useful for Investors?

ADP's Private Employment Report: Useful for Investors? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 06 Oct 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Friday morning, Consol Energy (CNX) announced that it will close its Mine 84 near Washington, Penn. The closure will cost roughly 60 employees their jobs.

The employees who lose their jobs will have the choice of taking a position with another Consol operation. The company will conduct the layoffs for 14 days, starting at 12:01 AM on December 1 -- talk about your happy holiday season. The good news is that these workers will be able to look for alternative work before the layoffs take place.

Continue reading Consol Energy to Close Mine

Consol Energy to Close Mine originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 01 Oct 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Meredith Whitney, of the Meredith Whitney Group, told Bloomberg News that she expects that securities firms around the world will cut 80,000 jobs. This would be about 10% from current levels. The cuts would begin after 2010 compensation payments.

Since the crash, Wall Street firms have been undergoing structural changes. The first wave saw cuts of 330,000 jobs around the world. Some firms have hired some personnel back; however, these small hires do not come close to the jobs lost.

Continue reading Whitney: Wall Street to Cut 80,000 Jobs

Whitney: Wall Street to Cut 80,000 Jobs originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 08 Sep 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Ronald McDonald debuted in 1963 with TV personality Willard Scott donning the clown costume for the first time in an ad spot for McDonald's (MCD). But if some health advocates have their way, the fiery-haired clown's days are numbered.

The Corporate Accountability International is calling McDonald's mascot a "deep-fried Joe Camel for the 21st Century" and is sponsoring "Retire Ronald" events at several locations around the country. The group claims that Ronald McDonald is a spokesperson for childhood obesity, and they want him cut from the payroll pronto.

Continue reading McDonald's May Fire Ronald McDonald

McDonald's May Fire Ronald McDonald originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 05 Apr 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Winter Weather May Skew February Jobs Report Data

Winter Weather May Skew February Jobs Report Data originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 04 Mar 2010 16:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The job market looked grim at the beginning of 2009, but as we crossed into 2010, there seems to be a glimmer of hope. We still aren't seeing jobs added yet, but at least the cuts are headed in the right direction. Last month, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas, announced layoffs fell 10% to 45,094. This is the lowest level seen since December 2007, exactly two years earlier, when there were only 44,416 job cuts. The most recent tally is also off 10% from November's 50,349, making it the fifth month in a row that layoffs have decreased. Since July, the stat has fallen 14% a month, on average.

Continue reading December Layoffs Lowest in a Year

December Layoffs Lowest in a Year originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 06 Jan 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Planned job cuts fell to 50,349 in November, the lowest level in nearly two years. The 9.6% decline from October, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas, is the fourth month in a row in which layoffs fell. Also, from November 2008 to November 2009, planned reductions plunged 72% from 181,671. November was the worst month of 2008.

Challenger, Gray & Christmas sees companies slowing down the axe-swinging, a trend that has continued through the back half of 2009. Since July 1, 2009, employers have cut an average of 69,252 jobs each month. Through the end of June, the average was 149,446. The aggressive layoff pace in the first two quarters of 2009 have pushed this year's total ahead of 2008, with the year-to-date planned reduction total reaching 1,242,936 last month. That beats the 2008 full-year total of 1,223,993 and tops the November 2008 amount of 1,057,645 by 17.5%.

Continue reading Layoffs slowing down, but that doesn't mean hiring

Layoffs slowing down, but that doesn't mean hiring originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 02 Dec 2009 09:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This winter, a bit more of New York is headed to Florida. Layoffs for 2010 have already been announced for the New York Times Company(NYT). The New York Times News Service will lose 25 editorial positions next year and shift the service's editing to one of the parent company's Florida newspapers. At present, the news service has 30 editorial jobs. Some of the layoffs will occur in February, and the others will happen in May.

These layoffs are not included in the planned slashing of 100 jobs in the flagship newspaper's newsroom -- a workforce reduction of 8% that should take hold by the end of the year. The NY Times is also ceasing pension contributions for nonunion employees.

Continue reading NYT News Service migrates after cut

NYT News Service migrates after cut originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 13 Nov 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Employers are planning to cut fewer jobs for the third month in a row, according to a new report that Challenger, Gray & Christmas has supplied to BloggingStocks.

The executive outplacement firm says that the number of planned reductions fell 16% in October to 55,679 positions -- from 66,404 in September. Last month's level was the lowest seen since March 2008, when 53,579 layoffs were planned. And, it's 51% lower than October 2008's 112,884 result. Planned staff reductions have fallen in eight of the past 10 months.

Continue reading Layoffs slowing down, but upturn isn't coming yet

Layoffs slowing down, but upturn isn't coming yet originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 07 Nov 2009 14:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Work smarter not harder. Do more with less. Increase your output. Become more productive.

You've heard all this before, right? What it all means is that layoffs are coming, and the survivors are going to have to take on a hell of a lot more work, with no increase in support, resources or compensation. As cuts come, the survivors fight to survive, and succeeding means that a new benchmark is set. If you can survive without the help you used to have, it's easier to defer hiring for a while.

Continue reading Employee productivity up close to 10%

Employee productivity up close to 10% originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The mayhem in the media industry continues. The Wall Street Journal, a News Corp (NASDAQ: NWS) property, is closing its Boston bureau and sending nine employees into the wind. The newswire and MarketWatch operations are going to stay open in Boston, however, with no headcount impact.

The Journal doesn't have any plans to close other offices, according to a memo by managing editor Robert Thomson: "there are no plans, nascent or otherwise, to close any other U.S. or international bureau." The WSJ will still support an "investigative function" in Boston, but the New York-based Money and Investing team will cover Boston's mutual fund industry, which boasts such heavy hitters as Fidelity.

At the same time, magazine company Time Inc., owned by Time Warner (NYSE: TWX) is looking to cut $100 million in expenses, and layoffs will undoubtedly figure into the equation. The company that owns Time, Fortune, People and Sports Illustrated - and falls under the same umbrella as AOL, which owns BloggingStocks - is feeling the squeeze of a media recession that's even worse than the regular recession we've all been battling for what feels like decades.

Continue reading Time and WSJ to lay off more

Time and WSJ to lay off more originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 30 Oct 2009 14:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The unemployment rate increased in 23 states in September, with 43 reporting job losses for the month (though not at an accelerating rate). This does signal that we're (hopefully) in the early stages of an economic recovery ... though this can also mean that some job seekers have just given up (and are no longer counted).

Layoffs have slowed down a bit, but companies aren't crazy about taking on new bodies. So far, 600,000 people have dropped out of the hunt. Unemployment now sits at 9.8%.

Continue reading Unemployment up in 23 states, 15 set records

Unemployment up in 23 states, 15 set records originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 22 Oct 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The number two search engine in the United States turned in a fantastic third quarter, far ahead of expectations. Cost-cutting, layoffs and business divestitures led to a surge in Yahoo's (NASDAQ: YHOO) profits and a 4.8% increase in share price in extended trading on Tuesday evening. Net income more than tripled to $186.1 million (13 cents per share) from the third quarter of 2008's result of $54.3 million (4 cents a share). Sales (exclusive of fees passed to partner sites) reached $1.13 billion, slightly above the $1.12 billion expected by analysts, according to a Bloomberg survey.

With the advertising market in rough shape and competition from Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) continually rising, Yahoo refocused on its core properties: the home page, messaging and mobile services. The company trimmed what it didn't need, which is why it was able to boost its earnings even with a decline in revenue. Increased ad revenue from auto manufacturers, travel companies and consumer product manufacturers also helped.

Yahoo's chief financial officer, Timothy Morse, says that the company's markets are "starting to stabilize." Of course, Yahoo itself must be doing something right: its share price is up 41% this year.

Continue reading Yahoo profit triples year-over-year

Yahoo profit triples year-over-year originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 21 Oct 2009 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Layoff announcements hit their lowest level since March 2008 last month, signaling market stabilization. Global outplacement consulting firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc. put the number of cuts at 66,404 for September, a 13% decline from July's 76,456. Year-over-year, the number of layoffs announced is down 30%, and September was the fourth month in a row in which job cuts fell relative to the same month a year earlier.

Planned job cuts reached 240,233 for the third quarter of 2009, according to Challenger, its lowest level since the first quarter of 2008, when there were 200,656 planned layoffs. For the third quarter of this year, job cuts fell 24.5% from the previous quarter's 318,165, and it's off 16.3% from 287,142 in the third quarter of 2009. At the beginning of 2009, the planned layoff rate reached a seven-year high of 578,510. Since then, the planned layoff rate fell 58.5%.

Continue reading Fewer job cuts in September, is relief coming?

Fewer job cuts in September, is relief coming? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 01 Oct 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The dominant theme in August's job report from the U.S. Department of Labor? August was another month of broad-based job losses, but the pace of job cutbacks is lessening.

As has been the case since the recession started in December 2007, construction (65,000 job cuts), manufacturing (63,000), financial services (28,000), and wholesale trade (17,000), again registered large job losses, while health care was one of few gainers, adding 28,000 jobs.

Continue reading Unemployment numbers signal need for new growth sectors

Unemployment numbers signal need for new growth sectors originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 08 Sep 2009 11:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

As we saw this morning, companies cut 298,000 jobs in August, according to ADP. The forecast was for 250,000 jobs lost. The report also revised last month's decline to 360,000.

Well, the Labor Department's report is due out in two days, and it may show a loss of 225,000 jobs, according to a Bloomberg News survey.

Continue reading Job cuts continue to be a drag on economic recovery

Job cuts continue to be a drag on economic recovery originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 02 Sep 2009 15:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

It looks like tomorrow could very well become yet another 'brace yourself Friday' or another edition of "As The U.S. Economy Turns."

Still, hopefully it won't become another "down goes the Dow" day, although analysts and economists certainly haven't ruled the latter out.

The reason? The July 2009 jobs report, to be released by the U.S. Labor Department Friday at 8:30 a.m. EDT. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg News expect the report to show that the nation lost 300,000 jobs in July, with the unemployment rate rising to 9.7% from 9.5% in June.

Continue reading Nonfarm payroll data released tomorrow -- traders brace themselves

Nonfarm payroll data released tomorrow -- traders brace themselves originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 06 Aug 2009 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Apartment vacancies in the United States hit their highest level in 22 years in the second quarter of 2009. Job losses are to blame, according to Bloomberg, as tenant demand falls when people don't have any income. Vacancies rose to 7.5% from 6.1% year-over-year, according to Reis Inc. But this still doesn't reach the 1987 level of 7.6%. In June, the U.S. unemployment rate hit a 26-year high, with payrolls dropping faster than expectations.

Conventional wisdom has it that potential homebuyers turn into renters when the job market softens. The rental pool is shrinking, however, leading to the high rate of apartment vacancies as landlords struggle to fill units. Asking rents for apartments fell 0.6% last quarter (for the second in a row), according to Reis, the largest fall since the company started to track this measure in 1999. Overall, asking rents (including other types of residences) were off 0.7% year-over-year, down to an average of $1,040 a month.

Continue reading Apartment vacancies spiked in Q2 in U.S.

Apartment vacancies spiked in Q2 in U.S. originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 08 Jul 2009 14:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

When News Corp. (NASDAQ: NWS) bought MySpace.com for over $500 million back in 2005, some said it was the way Rupert Murdoch would charge into the digital media audience business in a big way. While that was true at the time, the digital world and its audience can become fickle and change rapidly as new web-based properties develop. It's pretty obvious by now that Facebook has leaped past MySpace and is "the place" to be when it comes to social networking interaction (although Twitter is garnering all the buzz presently).

Why Did MySpace lose its way? MySpace evolved to become a portal, offering music downloads and other goodies, while Facebook kept its social networking status as a place where friends and associates could virtually connect. And there you have it -- MySpace didn't evolve as trends were created and rapidly changed.

Continue reading News Corp.'s MySpace has cooled its heels, begins layoffs

News Corp.'s MySpace has cooled its heels, begins layoffs originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 18 Jun 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.