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U.S. Jobs Continue To Vanish At Fast Pace

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By JEANNINE AVERSA

The Associated Press

Published: January 27, 2009

WASHINGTON - The recession is killing jobs at an alarming pace, with tens of thousands of new layoffs announced Monday by some of the biggest names in American business - Pfizer, Caterpillar and Home Depot.

More pink slips, pay freezes and other hits are expected to slam workers in the months ahead as companies desperately look for ways to survive.

"We're just seeing the tip of the iceberg - the big firms," said Rebecca Braeu, economist at John Hancock Financial Services. "There's certainly other firms beneath them that will lay off workers as quickly or even quicker."

Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer, which is buying rival drugmaker Wyeth in a $68 billion deal, and Sprint Nextel Corp., the country's third-largest wireless provider, said Monday they each will slash 8,000 jobs.

Home Depot, the biggest U.S. home improvement retailer, will get rid of 7,000 jobs and close its 34 Home Depot Expo stores, and General Motors Corp. said it will cut 2,000 jobs at plants in Michigan and Ohio because of slow sales.

Caterpillar, the world's largest maker of mining and construction equipment, disclosed nearly 20,000 job cuts, most of which already have been made. They include 5,000 new global layoffs of white-collar workers, which will come by the end of March.

And Texas Instruments, which makes chips for cell phones and other gadgets, said Monday it will cut 3,400 jobs because demand has slackened amid a slowing economy.

It didn't appear Monday that the layoffs would have a major impact on the Tampa Bay area. Home Depot used to be a major employer in the area, but a year ago it closed a customer service call center in Brandon that employed 750 people. Today, its presence largely consists of its trademark Home Depot retail stores, which are not being targeted by the job cuts. It has no Expo centers in the Tampa area.

A spokesman for Sprint Nextel said it was too soon to tell what geographic areas would be impacted by its layoffs.

A Caterpillar spokesman was unaware of any significant operations in the Tampa area. A spokeswoman for Pfizer said it is too early to say what the local impacts of its merger with Wyeth will be.

Tribune reporter Michael Sasso contributed to this report.

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