US & Worldwide largest mass layoff in history?

[Woodsman]

Massive Worldwide Layoff Underway At IBM

By Tekla PerryPosted 3 Feb 2015 | 17:00 GMT

Project Chrome, a massive layoff that IBM is pretending is not a massive layoff, is underway. First reported by Robert X. Cringely (a pen name) inForbes, about 26 percent of the company’s global workforce is being shown the door. At more than 100,000 people, that makes it the largest mass layoffat any U.S. corporation in at least 20 years. Cringely wrote that notices have started going out, and most of the hundred-thousand-plus will likely be gone by the end of February.

IBM immediately denied Cringely’s report, indicating that a planned $600 million “workforce rebalancing” was going to involve layoffs (or what the company calls “Resource Actions”) of just thousands of people. But Cringely responded that he never said that the workforce reductions would be all called layoffs—instead, multiple tactics are being used, including pushing employees out through low ratings (more on that in a moment). And some managers are indeed admitting to employees that their job has been eliminated as part of Project Chrome, leading employees to coin a new catchphrase: “Getting Chromed.”

[santafe2]

Re: US & Worldwide largest mass layoff in history?

Project Chrome, a massive layoff that IBM is pretending is not a massive layoff, is underway...

This is not news to anyone at IBM who was paying attention. I'd mentioned in another post that we hired a senior IBM developer / manager a while back. We've interviewed a few more over the last 6 months. The smart folks have been running for the door for a while now. There is opportunity written all over this for well organized companies looking for highly trained mid-level managers who would like to work under a less cumbersome process. If you're a start up, these folks will most likely not fit your culture but if your process is well developed you should be able to find someone as IBM completes this downsizing.

We had one series of interviews late last year where 2/3 of the candidates we brought in after phone interviews were from IBM or officers retiring from high level military positions. There is an enormous amount of talent out there looking for the right job. My takeaway is that there will be an entrepreneurial revolution in the US over the next several years. To me, this looks like the perfect petri dish for the US. Brash entrepreneurs meet well organized but recently chastised managers. Both these groups want to kick everyone's butt and will work harder than most expect.

I really wish the US government was smart enough to support small business but maybe it will be the multi-nationals tossing out the baby with the bathwater that will lead the next entrepreneurial revolution.

[Woodsman]

Re: US & Worldwide largest mass layoff in history?

This is not news to anyone at IBM who was paying attention. I'd mentioned in another post that we hired a senior IBM developer / manager a while back. We've interviewed a few more over the last 6 months. The smart folks have been running for the door for a while now. There is opportunity written all over this for well organized companies looking for highly trained mid-level managers who would like to work under a less cumbersome process. If you're a start up, these folks will most likely not fit your culture but if your process is well developed you should be able to find someone as IBM completes this downsizing.

We had one series of interviews late last year where 2/3 of the candidates we brought in after phone interviews were from IBM or officers retiring from high level military positions. There is an enormous amount of talent out there looking for the right job. My takeaway is that there will be an entrepreneurial revolution in the US over the next several years. To me, this looks like the perfect petri dish for the US. Brash entrepreneurs meet well organized but recently chastised managers. Both these groups want to kick everyone's butt and will work harder than most expect.

I really wish the US government was smart enough to support small business but maybe it will be the multi-nationals tossing out the baby with the bathwater that will lead the next entrepreneurial revolution.

Schumpeter couldn't have said it better himself, re. "creative destruction." I like it.

[don]

Re: US & Worldwide largest mass layoff in history?

Schumpeter couldn't have said it better himself, re. "creative destruction." I like it.

Now if only 'creative destruction' had been applied to the TBTFs . . . .

[vt]

Re: US & Worldwide largest mass layoff in history?

The creative destruction battle is already progressing against the TBTFs. Unfortunately they are putting up a fight:

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articl...t-over-401-k-s

http://www.bostonglobe.com/news/poli...dVJ/story.html

It's not just Wall Street; it's also the banks and insurance company and agents that sell high commission products.

[Woodsman]

Re: US & Worldwide largest mass layoff in history?

The creative destruction battle is already progressing against the TBTFs. Unfortunately they are putting up a fight.

"Your birth gave you the right to power...It's just in the blood, I think. You know, it's a birth thing. It's a birth thing."

[vt]

Re: US & Worldwide largest mass layoff in history?

A short explanation of Mayfair:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mayfair_Set


All of the key figures were rich gamblers who were members of the Clermont Club:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clermont_Set


The politicians and rich donors support each other in many ways:

http://cnsnews.com/commentary/michel...den-chronicles

This occurs on both sides of the political spectrum. Elections only seem to be about which group of privileged FIRE interest control the spoils.

[don]

Re: US & Worldwide largest mass layoff in history?

No Problemo . . .

US economy adds 257,000 jobs in biggest increase since November 2008

unemployment rate: 5.7%.

Or is it . . .


Table 15 BLS Alternate Measures of Unemployment

image: http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Q3-SKhO_HT...l-2015-02D.png




Table A-15 is where one can find a better approximation of what the unemployment rate really is.

Notice I said "better" approximation not to be confused with "good" approximation.

The official unemployment rate is 5.7%. However, if you start counting all the people who want a job but gave up, all the people with part-time jobs that want a full-time job, all the people who dropped off the unemployment rolls because their unemployment benefits ran out, etc., you get a closer picture of what the unemployment rate is. That number is in the last row labeled U-6.

U-6 is much higher at 11.3%. Both numbers would be way higher still, were it not for millions dropping out of the labor force over the past few years.

Some of those dropping out of the labor force retired because they wanted to retire. The rest is disability fraud, forced retirement, discouraged workers, and kids moving back home because they cannot find a job.

globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/#14pUuCMrJRjPwY8D.99