Incomplete list of publicly announced layoffs & shutdowns:
California: In Modesto, God refused to stop the shutdown of ‘his’ 32 years old Grace Lutheran School. ‘Christian’ administrators admitted they were in so much debt that the current student enrollment couldn’t cover the church mortgage payments! Los Angeles based American Apparel announced an undisclosed number of stores will be shutdown, and hundreds of employees laid off! Administrators say they have to cut $30-million USD in costs, and they’re facing lawsuits from former executives. Costa Mesa based bankrupt busted home decor chain store Anna’s Linens announced all 2-hundred stores across the U.S. will shutdown! In West Hollywood, after 41 years the French Quarter restaurant shutting down ‘officially’ for remodeling, but local news reports say the new owners might actually be tearing the whole thing down for some unknown construction project.
Connecticut: Major ObamaCare insurance provider Aetna has just announced $1-billion in cuts (jobs) between now and 2018! As I warned in earlier posts about insurance companies cornering the ObamaCare market by merging, it’s all connected to Aetna’s takeover of rival ObamaCare insurance provider Humana. Potentially thousands of jobs will be cut, and insurance rates will go up! After 15 years The Stone House restaurant shutdown due to “Recently, we lost one of our dearest shareholders. This loss has affected some of us greatly, and between the hardships we suffered and this loss, the opportunity that was presented by the unsolicited offer came at a time when some of us needed to rethink our lives and priorities.”-Dolores and Jim Quinlivan, owners
Delaware: In Dover, after 14 years Bell, Book & Candle shutdown: “Like a lot of stores, we were hit by the financial downturn from 2007 to 2009 and never really recovered. Last year, we lost money every single month and that trend has continued this year. Short of winning the lottery, we just can no longer afford to stay open.”-Ivo Dominguez, co-owner
Georgia: In Columbus, after 20 years Millie’s International Market shutting down due to the owner’s health problems.
Idaho: The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis revealed that the net personal income for Idahoans in the 1st quarter of 2015 dropped by $500-million! In Idaho the state ‘lawmakers’ have realized what idiots they are, especially after years of giving away hundreds of millions of tax dollars to lure foreign companies to Idaho, only to have most of them back out or fail, so now they’ve authorized the Department of Labor, and the Workforce Development Council, to offer a new “micro-grant” to train Idahoans for jobs within The Gem State. However, the “community based teams” doing the training must be able to 100% match the funding, so good luck. The Idaho Statesman has revealed that ObamaCare is actually raising healthcare prices in The Gem State through insurance and hospital mergers, which the healthcare system administrators claim is the only way they can survive the ObamaCare reimbursement cuts: “Size matters, and the objective of many hospitals and hospital systems is to get sufficiently big in a given geographic area so that you have leverage over the insurance company, because if you’re big enough, the insurance company needs your facilities in their network, because if they don’t have your facilities in their network, they can’t sell their product to the employers in town or the individuals in town.”– Paul Levy, a former hospital CEO
Illinois: Taxpayer funded community action agencies and non-profit charities across the sorry-ass state began laying off 1-thousand 5-hundred employees due to drastic funding cuts! ‘Elected lawmakers’ basically said if you’re poor then go die! What automotive industry recovery? Heavy vehicle maker Caterpillar continues to eliminate jobs due to crashing sales, this time a total of 45 employees are being laid off at their Pontiac factory. In Peoria, “After more than 30 years of creating ‘smiles made from scratch’ for central Illinois, our last day of operation will be July 11.”–Apple’s Bakery
Kansas: In Hiawatha, the Thriftway grocery store shutting down in the next three weeks. Administrators blaming “competition is a big factor….We have had declining sales…”, at least 38 jobs lost.
Kentucky: ObamaCare forced Nurses Registry and Home Health into chapter 11 bankruptcy. Administrators say they are owed $1-million in Medicaid payments, about 65% of its average monthly revenue! 2-hundred jobs threatened, and 1,350 home healthcare patients affected!
Maine: After 22 years, the Biddeford Free Clinic shutting down in September, the operators say ever since ObamaCare went into effect the number of uninsured patients they see has crashed (they treat only uninsured people). In Bath, after 57 years Gilmore’s Seafood shutdown, the owner forced to sell the property and blames the bad economy: “…it’s not been as good was it was in the late 80’s early 90’s….nowadays, it’s not the same. A two month gig in July and August, and the rest of the year isn’t that great.”-Ben Gilmore
Michigan: In Dearborn Heights, after 40 years Ken Baron’s Florist shutdown.
Missouri: Administrators with Mercy Springfield Communities directly blame ObamaCare for causing them to lose $30-million, thus forcing them to kill 127 healthcare jobs! Administrators say the ObamaCare reimbursement cuts actually outpace the increase in their patient volume, meaning they’re doing more work for less money: “Continued implementation of cuts in the Affordable Care Act, cuts in Medicare reimbursement, a switch to value-based payments, and lack of Medicaid expansion in Missouri are among many reasons that the Springfield Communities will see at least $30 million less revenue in the coming year, despite taking care of more patients.”– Alan Scarrow, president
Montana: In Butte, God refuses to stop the shutdown of two churches; Trinity United Methodist Church and Mountain View United Methodist Church. It’s blamed on the Rapture, I mean “severely dwindling congregations.”
New Mexico: In Santa Teresa, the state Public Education Commission shutdown the Health Sciences Academy after only one year of operations. State administrators claim the school was being operated fraudulently.
New York: In Utica, ObamaCare forced Bosch Healthcare Systems to issue a shutdown WARN, at least 23 jobs lost in September. ObamaCare also forcing Fresenius Medical Care-Brooklyn Kidney Center to shutdown their Park Slope dialysis center, affecting 65 employees and 150 Medicaid and Medicare patients! The dumb Medicare and Medicaid recipients are oblivious to the fact that ObamaCare is causing all these healthcare shutdowns. Also in Brooklyn, ObamaCare forcing medical supplies company GeriMedix to issue a shutdown WARN, 52 jobs lost in September. In Canandaigua, Wade’s Market Center issued a shutdown WARN for September, 133 grocery jobs lost! In Long Island, the state Department of Labor eliminating 2,540 jobs as the Nassau Coliseum shuts down! Supposedly a new contractor is taking over and conducting massive remodeling work. It’s unknown how many Coliseum employees will be hired back, renovations aren’t expected to be finished until December 2016. After creating 40 jobs in the Rochester area, booze seller Constellation Brands laid off at least 11 people. In NYC, clothier The Donna Karan Company issued a shutdown WARN for their corporate offices and their West 40th Street store, 133 jobs lost by January 2016! Administrators say the bad economy is forcing them to “reorganize”. In North Syracuse, hotel Ramada Syracuse issued a shutdown WARN for September, blaming the bad economy, 81 jobs lost.
North Carolina: The state Board of Education shutdown the Carrboro PACE Academy due to “persistent patterns of noncompliance, low academic performance, and potential financial issues.”
Ohio: In Lorain, the Erieview Motel shutdown, leaving dozens of long term residents homeless. City administrators ordered the motel torn down due to multiple health and safety code violations, and are so arrogant they said they were doing the residents a favor! However, residents say the city council is not providing them with new living options! Many of the residents are people who can’t meet traditional qualifications for renting apartments.
Pennsylvania: What automotive industry recovery? In Somerset, tire retreading company McCarthy Tire Service shutting down, 38 jobs lost in August. Point Park University laid off 32 employees “in response to changing demands in the higher education market”, meaning crashing student enrollment (what I call Disappearing Students Syndrome, DSS). In Reading, Giant Food Stores shutting down its Rockland Plaza store in August, 90 jobs lost. Administrators say the crashing economy cannot support all their Reading area stores. Clothing store Gap shutting down in the Wyoming Valley Mall, as part of plans to eliminate 175 stores across the U.S.
Rhode Island: After 39 years restaurant Rue de L’Espoir up for sale so the owner can retire.
South Carolina: After 94 years (surviving the Great deflationary Depression and numerous recessions) Morris Sokol Furniture Company shutdown.
Washington: Redmond based Microsoft has sold part of its bing mapping service to Uber, expect mass layoffs. From July 2014 to June 2015 Microsoft eliminated at least 18-thousand jobs! In Seattle, Cinema Books shutdown after 31 years of business. The owner blames major construction across the street for blocking customer access: “I don’t have the financial resources to hold over many months of having a declining customer base.”-Stephanie Ogle
03 July 2015: “…as if the faucet had been turned off.”
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.”