Incomplete list of publicly announced layoffs & shutdowns:
Arizona: In Tucson, California based Intuit killing 200 jobs!
California: In Woodland Hills, tech company Intuit continues massive job killing, this time 120 employees! Company officials say it’s part of its shift to ‘cloud’ operations. In Yuba City, Valley Fine Foods laid off 30 employees. Company officials say they hope the layoffs will be temporary.
Florida: In North Palm Beach, Panama Hattie’s Seafood House shutdown by the County government, 45 jobs lost. County officials say the restaurant failed to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines for numerous code violations.
Illinois: In Arlington Heights, California based Intuit shutting down and killing 104 jobs!
Iowa: In Ankeny, after 13 years Mattress Outlet shutdown.
Massachusetts: After 177 years (surviving the Great Depression & numerous recessions) kitchen utensil maker Lamson & Goodnow Manufacturing now chapter 11 bankrupt busted. Company officials say sales have crashed so much they cannot pay back millions of dollars worth of federal government and private loans. In Mansfield, after 31 years Sweet-N-Crafty Italian ice cream shop shutdown. Local news reports said it was the second oldest business in the area, and had donated a lot of money over the years to the community.
Michigan: In Ionia County, Central Michigan University shutdown a school for poor kids. The university revoked the charter for Threshold Academy, affecting more than 150 students. The elementary school principal blamed economic instability for what I call DSS (Disappearing Student Syndrome). A young student confronted the principal saying “Why do they want to break people’s hearts?” The school’s motto was “Small School – Big Heart”. In Muskegon, after 25 years Omni Fitness shutdown. The owner blames the bad economy: “The enormous amount of money that is required to operate and maintain this building, along with substantial loss in memberships, has strained our budget to the point where just keeping up with maintenance is challenging – let alone trying to budget for future improvements, new equipment, etc. Our costs have continued to rise, but our revenues and membership levels have not kept pace.”-Lana Carson
North Carolina: What automotive industry recovery? In Charlotte, Ireland based clutch maker Eaton killing 84 jobs and moving production to Illinois and the country of Mexico. Too Big to Jail BB&T killing off an undisclosed number of offices and jobs due to the bad economy: “In response to a challenging economy and competitive environment, BB&T is restructuring and, in some cases, consolidating positions in several areas of the bank.”
Ohio: Too Big to Jail U.S. Bank announced it will shutdown its Oakwood office in November.
Virginia: In Stafford County, California based Intuit killed 159 jobs!
Washington: In Bellevue, a patent company with a convoluted operating plan, Intellectual Ventures, announced they will kill off 140 jobs! Sony owned video game maker Sucker Punch laid off an undisclosed number of employees.
The U.S. Department of Labor (DoL) doesn’t count the hundreds of layoffs involving less than 50 people each, in its mass layoff reports. It also doesn’t count all the little ‘mom & pop’ businesses that shutdown. It doesn’t count people who get a severance for being laid off.
“Our ideals and principles, as well as our national security…That’s what makes America different. That’s what makes us exceptional.”-Barack Obama, 10 September 2013