Incomplete list of publicly announced layoffs & shutdowns:
California: Washington based Boeing laying off another eight people in Long Beach, by October. CGR/Thompson Industries issued a shutdown WARN for their Fulerton operation, 102 jobs lost by October! Lyris Technologies laying off 79 people by the end of September. Oil giant Chevron issued more mass layoff WARNs, this time 5-hundred people to become jobless by the middle of October! In San Jose, Quest Diagnostics eliminating 78 jobs in October. In Sunnyvale, Illinois based Motorola laying off 213 people by the end of October! (Does it have anything to do with the merger with China’s Lenovo?) Tax-sucker Raytheon Intelligence issued a shutdown WARN for their Chula Vista ops, 41 jobs lost in October. Sky Aerospace Products issued a shutdown WARN for their Los Angeles ops, 53 jobs lost in October. In Pittsburg, steel company USS-POSCO Industries issued a mass layoff WARN saying 661 people will become jobless at the end of October! ObamaCare forcing Kindred Hospital South Bay to shutdown its KND Development 53 in October, 94 jobs lost. In San Diego, Soitec Solar Industries shutting down in October, 1-hundred jobs lost! In Berkeley, reports say biotech company XOMA eliminating 58 jobs in order to “lower operating expenses and preserve capital”. Western Digital Technologies WARNed it will layoff 137 Californians by the end of October! Silgan Containers continues to eliminate jobs, this time 180 people in Riverbank will be laid off in October!
Colorado: In Denver, after three and a half years River North Brewery shutting down their Blake Street location, blaming greatly increased competition in the past couple of years.
Maine: After 70 years Nicely’s Market shutting down due to “Mom is retiring, and I have other ventures going on.”-Kyle Nicely
Michigan: In Detroit, God refuses to stop the shutdown of ‘his’ Quaker run Friends School. Administrators say they’re “working hard” to find investors who’re willing to pump money into the 50 years old school so they can re-open for the 2016-17 school year. Too Big to Jail Fifth Third Bank shutting down five offices. It’s part of their bigger plan to get rid of 130 offices across the U.S.
Minnesota: The Lowery Cafe and Ancestry Books being forced to shutdown their brick-n-mortar ops by a Snidely Whiplash landlord: “…our landlord…abruptly and we believe arbitrarily removed the management at The Lowry Cafe and closed it down…our landlord has neglected to give us a new written lease, which has placed us in a month to month as of June 1st. These grievances and the vulnerable position we are left in are our reasons for closing Ancestry’s physical location.”-Chaun Webster and Verna Wong
Missouri: After ten years Kostaki’s Pizzeria shutdown, the owners said they’d rather spend time with family. What automotive industry recovery? Maker of automotive parts Woodbridge Sequencing Center eliminating 2-hundred jobs by the end of October!
Nebraska: Farm vehicle maker CNH (Case New Holland) Industrial eliminating 70 jobs at its Grand Island factory, in October. One reports said CNH laid off 136 workers in February 2015, and more than 2-hundred in August 2014! It’s blamed on a 40% crash in farm equipment sales, according to the Association of Equipment Manufacturers. Those sales are down because farmers are losing their financial ass in the commodity markets: “The state of the Ag economy right now is in trouble. I’m in the red….I’m losing money at the current market values.”-Miles Ramsey, farmer
New Jersey: After 63 years Babyland, in Millburn, shutting down in September.
New York: Honeywell Scanning and Mobility issued a layoff WARN for their Skaneateles Falls location, to take place on 31 December 2015. Drugs maker Pfizer issued a shutdown WARN for their Rouses Point location, the shutdown taking place between November and the end of December.
North Carolina: In Charlotte, 935 The Red Room club shutdown because the owner went to prison for federal tax violations. However, some wimp-ass local big brother, big sister, police state loving TV news media made it sound like the nightclub was shut down because of violent crimes. It’s been revealed that the shutdown of popular restaurant Greek Isles was due to the greedy landlord jacking up the rent after the 11 years lease expired. The restaurant operators are hoping to find a new ‘home’.
Tennessee: A Shelby County fire station was shutdown due to lack of manpower. The County Fire department had to stretch its assets to cover the Millington Fire Department which is also seriously lacking in manpower. The lack of manpower is blamed on a lack of funding from residents. The Tennessean reports “…since March, the number of business closings nearly tripled to 4,498. The third quarter typically has the highest rate of dissolutions, according to the Secretary of State’s office, which means the number of closings is expected to climb further this year.”
Texas: In La Marque, greyhound racing track Gulf Greyhound Park shutting down in January 2016, 3-hundred jobs lost! Administrators admitted they could no longer compete with other race tracks. In San Antonio, The Monterey restaurant shutting down in November, despite five years of successful sales: “The Monty was a much bigger success than we ever expected it to be, but it was never expected to be an economic success. It was a laboratory, but we didn’t really even have a plan when we first started.”-Chad Carey, founder
Virginia: In Centertown, after 31 years electronics retailer DeWitt shutdown due to increased competition.
Washington: Seattle based Amazon laid off “dozens of engineers” at its California located Lab126, blaming it on their failed Fire Phone. California based Red Lion shutting down their Vancouver hotel by the end of October, 82 jobs lost. It’s blamed on the city’s plan to redevelop the waterfront.
Wyoming: After 20 years of ethanol production Wyoming Ethanol shutting down their Torrington plant, 23 jobs lost. They can’t compete against lower oil prices. Mayor Mike Varney said the shutdown will directly affect local corn growers: “It`s going to hurt us…..our farmers that have raised corn for ethanol production, that’s going to be a real blow to them…”
26 August 2015:“We’ve never made money…I can’t go any further.”
WARN=Worker Adjustment & Retraining Notification
The U.S. Department of Labor (DoL) no longer issues mass layoff reports: “On March 1, 2013, President Obama ordered into effect the across-the- board spending cuts (commonly referred to as sequestration) required by the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act, as amended. Under the order, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) must cut its current budget by more than $30 million, 5 percent of the current 2013 appropriation, by September 30, 2013. In order to help achieve these savings and protect core programs, the BLS will eliminate two programs, including Mass Layoff Statistics, and all ‘measuring green jobs’ products. This news release is the final publication of monthly mass layoff survey data.”