Dot Com News from Week of November 26, 2001

• 11/30/01 - Tissue and diaper maker Kimberly-Clark Corp. said it will close five plants with 1,400 workers because of weak demand, but remains on track to meet analysts' earnings expectations through next year.
• 11/30/01 - Avici Systems, a maker of Internet routers, said Friday that it has cut a further 40 jobs, or 12 percent, of its work force in a bid to curb business expenses because of a market slowdown.
• 11/30/01 - Enron Corp. is now working with its lawyers in preparation for a filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. However, because its business has quickly deteriorated, it is uncertain that a reorganization will be possible. The only other alternative would be to liquidate the company by selling its operations in separate parts under the supervision of a court.
• 11/30/01 - Japanese electronics company Fujitsu gave 670 of its employees the boot today as it closes its Gresham, Oregon plant. The plant which produces memory will cease production before the end of January 2002 and will resume operations in Japan.
• 11/29/01 - Telecommunications provider Broadwing will terminate 900 employees or about 15% of its total workforce as part of restructuring. The company said it was destined for success in the future and will reach its goal of becoming free cash flow positive by the middle of 2002. Broadwing is also closing its construction division of the company.
• 11/29/01 - Time Inc. will be terminating its Asiaweek magazine as well as the employment of 80 people. Also Family Life and On magazines are seeing their end as the company struggles through one of the worst advertising recessions in recent history.
• 11/29/01 - Federated Department Stores in an effort to break even by 2003, will cut 100 employees. The cuts which will be made by February 1, 2003 will affect its Internet operations. The company will also reduce the number of its merchandise offerings.
• 11/28/01 - Energy conglomerate Enron Corp. is expected to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in what will be considered one of the most complex bankruptcy proceedings ever. Because the company has tens of billions of dollars involved in detailed contracts with other companies, this could have a devastating impact on many companies. According to Edward Tillinghast, a bankruptcy specialist regarding the possible bankruptcy of Enron, "there is nothing to compare it to."
• 11/28/01 - IBM will let go of 1,000 employees in its semiconductor division as the company suffers weakened demand in the chip market. Specifically engineers and managers will be targeted in its plants in Essex Junction, VT, Endicott, NY and Fishkill, NY.
• 11/28/01 - Palm, known for its hand-held computer products, will lay off approximately 250 employees. The cuts include standard employees as well as contractors and the company hopes to hire more employees in its solutions and platform solutions groups.
• 11/27/01 - Official Payments Corporation, a provider of electronic payment options to government entities, announced that the company is undertaking a proactive corporate restructuring which is intended to significantly reduce the company's operating expenses and use of cash. The restructuring will a near-term reduction of over one-third of the company's workforce.
• 11/27/01 - The San Francisco Chronicle plans to cut 220 employees, or about 8.5 percent of its work force, as it joins a raft of other publications slashing staff in response to sharp drops in advertising revenue.
• 11/26/01 - German electronics and engineering group Siemens said that it might delay wage increases for up to 40,000 of its higher-paid workers by six months as part of a drive to cut costs.
• 11/26/01 - Philips Electronics, amid a slump in the semiconductor market, announced it will reorganize its operations and cut as many as 4,000 employees. These cuts would occur during the second half of this year.
• 11/26/01 - Management consulting firm, McKinsey & Co. has been discreetly cutting between 5% and 7% of its staff in the United States and Canada. This accounts for as many as 210 of its 3,000 support employees. The company worldwide employees about 13,000 people. The company is laying off staffers with severance pay as its consulting industry has slowed down recently.
• 11/26/01 - IT services company Cap Gemini Ernst & Young plans to layoff at least an estimated 2,000 people on top of 3,500 announced earlier in the year. The company currently employs approximately 60,000 people around the world. This decision was made as the company deals with a decrease in the IT industry.
• 11/26/01 - Telecommunications carrier Powertel will eliminate 32 employees in an effort to reduce costs. This accounts for 10% of its total workforce and will affect workers from all areas of the company. The company said this was necessary even though sales have increased monthly.
• 11/26/01 - It has been officially declared that March 2001 was the turning point that the United States in particular entered a recession. Prior to this was the nation's longest expansion of the economy. This revelation could persuade Washington to focus sooner on an economic stimulus package.