During the months of January and February of 2001, the U.S. manufacturing industry shed an estimated 186,271 jobs, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. While job cuts in the automotive sector have garnered the most attention, and rightly so, few sectors have been immune. For the most part, manufacturers blamed poor market conditions, an economic slowdown and restructuring changes in the face of new markets.

But January and February have come and gone, and companies are still liquidating staffs and sloughing their skins. The following stories represent a portion of the job cuts in the manufacturing industry in March 2001.

Motorola employees hit hard by job cuts
Motorola Inc. announced it would lay off an additional 4,000 workers, bringing its total number of job cuts to 22,000 and vaulting the company into second place for the highest number of job cuts by a company since December. DaimlerChrysler AG holds the dubious distinction of first place with 26,000 job cuts.

Ford cuts jobs at truck factory
In order to pull its production in line with demand, Ford Motor Company announced it would cut 830 workers, one shift, from its Lincoln Navigator/Ford Expedition factory, reported Reuters. Employees laid off from the Wayne, Mich., truck plant will be offered transfers or receive 95 percent of their regular pay, according to union contracts.

DuPont cuts 4 percent of workforce
DuPont Company announced it would cut 4,000 jobs, or 4 percent of its 93,000-member workforce, citing weakness in its textile and apparel markets. The company also said it will drop nearly 1,300 outside contractors and will close some manufacturing sites.

Delphi turns 11,500 jobs loose
Reacting to a soft automotive market, a slow economy and inevitably short Q1 earnings, Delphi Automotive Systems Corp. announced it will cut 11,500 job under its enormous restructuring plan. The job cuts will affect 5,600 Delphi hourly workers and 2,000 white-collar workers in the U.S. About 3,900 workers outside of the U.S. will lose their jobs, as well. Nearly 5 percent of Delphi's workforce will be cut.

Delphi to idle 4,000 workers
Delphi Automotive Systems said it plans to idle 4,000 workers starting March 26 in order to bring production in line with automakers' reduced production.

Procter & Gamble announces huge layoff
P&G announced March 22 it would lay off about 9 percent of its workforce, or about 9,600 employees, in the wake of a manufacturing slowdown plaguing the industry, and a financial crisis in Turkey, its 12th-largest market.

DaimlerChrysler reportedly to begin white-collar layoffs
Nearly 2,700 white-collar workers will be laid off from DaimlerChrysler AGs Chrysler Group March 16, sources told the Detroit Free Press.

Furniture maker closes plants, cuts jobs
As part of a restructuring and realignment process, Broyhill Furniture will close its Newton, N.C., plant by June 1 and cut 277 jobs, the company said. A sagging furniture market also forced Broyhill and its parent company, Furniture Brands International, to close a 172-employee, 87,000-square-foot factory in Summerville, S.C. The moves are part of a decision Furniture Brands International made in late February to cut 1,000 jobs and close up to 500,000 square feet of manufacturing space.

Intel cuts 5,000 jobs
Intel Corporation, the enormous computer processor manufacturer, announced it will cut 5,000 jobs over the next nine months in response to a slowing economy and revised revenue estimates that reflect a revenue drop of about 25 percent in Q1 2001.

Federal-Mogul Corp. to cut 1,100 jobs
Automotive parts supplier Federal-Mogul Corp. said it needs to cut 1,100 jobs, about 9 percent of its salaried workforce, because of a slowing U.S. auto industry, Reuters reported. The cuts are directly related to a drop in production, which in turn is due to growing inventories of unsold cars and trucks.

Polaroid steps back, looks at big picture
Polaroid Corp., a household name in instant photography, announced it will lay off 950 workers, or about 11 percent of its workforce, in hopes it will save around $60 million annually. The film and camera producer expects half of the layoffs to take place in Massachusetts, with the other half occurring globally.

Paul Markgraff is the Web Editor for MROToday magazine's Web site, MROToday.com. He can be reached at .

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