Microsoft exploring significant job cuts. (lending, health insurance, 2009, financial)

[70Ford]

In Rare Move, Microsoft Is Exploring Job Cuts - WSJ.com

Microsoft mulls job cuts: report | U.S. | Reuters

Microsoft Corp. is seriously exploring significant work force reductions that could be announced as early as next week, in a sign that the weak economy is prompting tough decisions even at one of the steadiest ships in the technology industry.

[Topaz]

Well, if they are going to do it, they should act quickly rather than let the employees live in anxiety for weeks and weeks. And hopefully their severance packages will help ease the sting of being laid off in a tough economy.

[teamirene]

Word on the 'street' (my MS clients) is that any news will probably come this week, or at least by the end of the month - possibly more news in March. Rumors run from just a reduction in temporary contractors to potentially significant reductions in full time employees - most people seem to think some full-timers will be cut, but no one I've talked to knows for sure and I hope that's not the case.

[seattlenextyear]

I thought it was the MSN group?

[texastrigirl]

What a tough decision...let multitudes of very talented people go...only to need them back in a year or two when things settle and end up costing yourself more in the end. Pay now or pay later. Bad deal either way because no one knows what later looks like but we sure know what now looks like. Let's hope they get innovative in their cost cutting choices. Will be interesting to see if they change their health insurance benefits to cut costs.

[70Ford]

5,000 jobs.

Microsoft Corp. said Thursday it would lay off 5,000 workers over the next 18 months, including 1,400 jobs today, marking the first time in its history that it has laid off workers across all of its operations.

Microsoft Reports Second-Quarter Results=

[coldbliss]

Wow. Bad news for the Seattle economy.

Let's check the score card:

WaMu is dissolved into oblivion due to the subprime lending fiasco and alleged illegal financial activities by the management. A few thousand high-paying professional jobs in Seattle whacked for good.

Boeing: No carriers are buying new aircraft. The domestic carriers are severely financially strapped. They will keep putting more duct tape on the older 737, MD-80s, and 757 models before they buy a shiny, new plane from Boeing. Thousands of engineering and manufacturing jobs whacked for good. Those former Boeing workers are going to need a new line of work. The kind of work that involves lower salaries and non-existent health care benefits.

Microsoft: I bet those 5,000 knifed souls from Redmond are sending resumes to various Silicon Valley firms as we speak. These guys will say, "Screw Seattle with its dreary rainy days" and climb aboard moving vans for California, Texas, Colorado, and Washington, DC. We aren't talking janitors making $10 per hour but people with serious computer science knowledge making six-figures in some cases.

I detected some smugness from the posters in the Seattle forum regarding the recession. "Oh, it won't be that bad in Seattle", wrote many posters. "Seattle is different from other places in the country". Uh-huh.

I grew up in Detroit, Michigan and I knew that if the Big Three auto makers fail...the city and state will go down as well. Michigan has the highest unemployment rate and the largest population decline in the country. With Seattle, if Boeing and Microsoft go down...you will see an exodus of moving vans heading out of Washington state for greener pastures. The amount of wealth generated by these companies has an enormous impact on Seattle's fortunes.

[toughguy]

Seattle is not and never will be Detroit. We survived the 2001 tech crash and we'll survive this calamity as well. No doubt some will look for jobs elsewhere, but the majority will find employment locally. We are still below the national average for unemployment. The quality of life factors alone will keep people in the Puget Sound area. Do you think the economic climate is better elsewhere? Silicon Valley is hurting just as much if not worse than we are. Intel is laying off thousands and closing factories. Google will be reducing workforce as well. I detect a hint of satisfaction in your post as if this is somehow enjoyable to you. It sounds like a case of misery loves company.

[70Ford]

Washington unemployment rate soars in December - Puget Sound Business Journal (Seattle):
Washington is at 7.1 percent.

In the Seattle/Bellevue/Everett area, the unemployment rate jumped to 6.2 percent last month from 5.4 percent a month earlier.

[coldbliss]

This recession is FAR worse than the 2000-2001 recession after the dot.com bust. I don't recall Microsoft paring down its staff by at least 6,000 during the 2001 recession. Qualified IT professionals are going to be on the unemployment rolls for a longer period. The quality of life in the Seattle area will get real expensive fast if you are not drawing a paycheck; thus, the rationale for finding jobs in other parts of the country.

No, I am not getting satisfaction about Seattle suffering from the economic blows. I want to relocate there some day and I am just ticked that there is no one place safe from the recession.

Originally Posted by toughguy

Seattle is not and never will be Detroit. We survived the 2001 tech crash and we'll survive this calamity as well. No doubt some will look for jobs elsewhere, but the majority will find employment locally. We are still below the national average for unemployment. The quality of life factors alone will keep people in the Puget Sound area. Do you think the economic climate is better elsewhere? Silicon Valley is hurting just as much if not worse than we are. Intel is laying off thousands and closing factories. Google will be reducing workforce as well. I detect a hint of satisfaction in your post as if this is somehow enjoyable to you. It sounds like a case of misery loves company.