Tough times are back in the business world, and with them the job cuts. The past few months have seen several global giants, including IT companies, shed jobs. While in some cases the reason behind these job cuts is business restructuring, in others it is the need to become more cost efficient. Here are some of the biggest IT companies which have announced job cuts in 2012.
1) HP – 27,000
In May, Hewlett Packard (HP) announced it will lay-off 27,000 employees across the globe. This included 9,000 job cuts in the USA, while CEO Meg Whitman assured that this move will not affect employees in India.
2) Nokia – 14,000
In February, Nokia stated that it planned to fire 2,300, 1,000 and 700 jobs in Hungary, Finland and Mexico, respectively, as it shifted all manufacturing operations to Asia. Then in June, Nokia declared plans to let go of 10,000 of its employees by the end of 2013 as part of the cost cutting initiative.
3) Sony - 10,000
Sony in April said it will shed 10,000 employees as part of its 'One Sony' initiative. This means that the company will lose 6% of its global staff in a bid to once again become profitable.
4) Research In Motion – 8,000
As part of its restructuring programme, BlackBerry maker Research in Motion (RIM) said in January it will slash 5,000 jobs. In August, reports quoting insiders came that the company will fire another 3,000 staffers.
5) Sharp – 8,000
The embattled Japanese manufacturer Sharp in August announced it would cut 5,000 jobs as part of its cost cutting efforts. Later, sources said that the company will sell two plants and, thus, slash 3,000 jobs, while news reports said Sharp may eventually shed 10,000 jobs.
6) Nokia Siemens – 7,030
Nokia Siemens' restructuring programme includes 2,900 job cuts in Germany in March, while 630 jobs were slashed in Finland. The company shed 3,500 jobs in Latin America as it exited a service and maintenance deal with Brazil's Oi.
7) Alcatel-Lucent – 5,000
Alcatel-Lucent decided to let go off 5,000 employees in order to lower its spending and produce more profit. All divisions except research and development will be affected by this move, which will be completed by 2013-end.
8) Motorola – 4,000
Under Google, Motorola Mobility will cut 4,000 jobs across the globe. This move, announced in August, translates into 20% employees of the company being laid off as part of the restructuring process. The company will also shut down approximately 30 offices across the world and 'shrink operations' in India.
9) Cisco – 1,300
In July, Cisco announced that it will lay off 1,300 people from its workforce, which amounts to 2% of its total staff. The technology giant was compelled to take this step as its sales reduced under intense competition and limping economic conditions.
10) IBM – 1,202
In February, Alliance@IBM, an organisation by IBM employees, released data that IBM laid-off 1,202 employees in various business units throughout the world. It reported the data based on the severance documents it received from the staffers who were let go by the company.
Source : TOI
