By Kevin Kastner
WASHINGTON (MNI) – There were 42,759 layoff intentions announced in
October, down sharply from 115,730 in September, but up from the 37,986
job cuts announced in October 2010, job placement firm Challenger, Gray
and Christmas, Inc. said in a report released Wednesday. The data are
not seasonally adjusted.
Layoffs in October were led by the consumer products sector, which
reported 7,159 job reductions in the month.
The government sector announced only 2,785 layoffs in the month
following the 54,182 layoffs announced in September, most of which
resulted from reductions in the number of troops.
The financial sector announced only 497 layoffs in October, down
sharply from the 31,167 layoffs in September, when 30,000 layoffs were
announcement by Bank of America.
While both of those sectors saw improvement, John Challenger, chief
executive officer of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, noted that both
sectors are expected to add more cuts in the future. In particular,
there are plans to reduce the size of the Postal Service, which could
result in more than 200,000 job cuts according to Challenger.
At the same time, the European debt crisis and continued housing
market distress has resulted in further instability in the financial
sector.
In other data released, hiring intentions surged to 159,177 in
October from 76,551 in September, and were up from 124,766 in October
2010. Seasonal hiring in the retail sector led all other sectors in each
of those three months, though many of those jobs are temporary rather
than permanent.
Retail hiring was 133,930 in October, up from 70,912 in September
and 66,000 a year ago.
** Market News International Washington Bureau: 202-371-2121 **
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