Am I the only one in Austin terrified at the thought of local layoffs this month? (Howe: mattress, home)

[CarnivalGal]

Originally Posted by TexasHorseLady

The other problem for the small businesses is, even if they have work, getting paid.

Very true. Luckily my husband's company is not THAT small, just certainly not a Dell or AMD.

I personally know of a small, locally owned company in Pflugerville (used to be a client of mine) that went under because their largest customer (Dell) never paid it's bills - and this was long before the current economic mess.

[centralaustinite]

I am talking about big, publicly held companies who employ hundreds of folks in town who are having to announce quarterly earnings (or lack thereof) this month. Industry is contracting at a furious pace globally and it is starting to hit here hard. And yes, this will negatively affect their suppliers and smaller businesses who are their vendors or suppliers.

At least Travis County forced Spansion to pay its taxes for local property, their suppliers are not getting paid.

[orngkat]

Spouse is in the booze business. No layoffs there... people drink even more in bad times.

[TexasHorseLady]

Auto mechanics are being hired, as well, as people decide to keep their cars longer.

[HappyTexan]

Originally Posted by centralaustinite

I am talking about big, publicly held companies who employ hundreds of folks in town who are having to announce quarterly earnings (or lack thereof) this month. Industry is contracting at a furious pace globally and it is starting to hit here hard. And yes, this will negatively affect their suppliers and smaller businesses who are their vendors or suppliers.

At least Travis County forced Spansion to pay its taxes for local property, their suppliers are not getting paid.

IT has been laying off in the Austin area since late last year. They don't have to file WARN notices because they lay off nationwide.

[Exiled Texan]

It is ugly out there Central. Really ugly. Hang on. It is going to be a wild year.

[carolinatx26]

Originally Posted by centralaustinite

I know most people on this forum are newcomers moving here from places where the economy is much worse but I am afraid that March is going to be a terrible month for layoff announcements here in Austin.

Does no one else sense this?

Austin has a high number of manufacturers (high tech and traditional) and orders in all sectors are down, catastrophically down, down to levels never before seen. And with oil at $40 a barrel, green energy alternatives can't get funding and traditional energy companies are hurting too. Many big employers have already done wage cuts and involuntary vacations, layoffs are next.

I am afraid that the other shoe is dropping this month.

Please tell me, I am wrong.

Wrong? I'm just surprised that you guys haven't already been laying off people. The company I work for "??SemiConductor" has layed off 3-4 hundred people already. And this started back in Jan - Feb. No more bonuses, cut our 401K contributions, elimating overtime, decreased our differential pay, and they even Took away the free coffee!!!
The other shoe has been dropping all year at my company which employees alot of Austin/Pflugerville/Manor folks. There are even talks surfacing that they may be shutting down 1 of our plants.

[centralaustinite]

Originally Posted by carolinatx26

Wrong? I'm just surprised that you guys haven't already been laying off people. The company I work for "??SemiConductor" has layed off 3-4 hundred people already. And this started back in Jan - Feb. No more bonuses, cut our 401K contributions, elimating overtime, decreased our differential pay, and they even Took away the free coffee!!!
The other shoe has been dropping all year at my company which employees alot of Austin/Pflugerville/Manor folks. There are even talks surfacing that they may be shutting down 1 of our plants.

Hey, my family is there too! Similar industry. No raise, no promotions, no bonus, and wage cuts. That is the job we are praying we KEEP!

it is ugly and getting uglier. It just doesn't appear on this forum for some reason.

[dswg]

Originally Posted by carolinatx26

Wrong? I'm just surprised that you guys haven't already been laying off people. The company I work for "??SemiConductor" has layed off 3-4 hundred people already. And this started back in Jan - Feb. No more bonuses, cut our 401K contributions, elimating overtime, decreased our differential pay, and they even Took away the free coffee!!!
The other shoe has been dropping all year at my company which employees alot of Austin/Pflugerville/Manor folks. There are even talks surfacing that they may be shutting down 1 of our plants.

My last day at the company you speak of was in Feb. They don't call it a layoff and as far as the Statesman is concerned, only 20 people from this company have been laid off. Although head count has been reduced by several hundred. I now hear that they are having forced OT in my department. Trying to find a job as a non-degree engineer is extremely tough right now. I've also heard that one of the fabs might shut down. I think Texas is just catching up with the country and it will be a very difficult 2009.

[love roses]

We've been lucky so far. My husband is a truck driver, but luckily they don't deal with the IT companies on a large basis so we've been safe. His last company primarily dealt with Dell and it caused several drivers to lose their jobs when they closed the manufacturing plant.