Another Sector Announced Layoffs, Hasbro Reduced Its Workforce, IBM And SAP Have Joined Technology Companies That Are Reducing Employment
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Mass layoffs began to spread beyond the tech sector. Hasbro is joining the wave of companies cutting jobs as the global economy slows in response to rising interest rates and other macroeconomic factors such as a reduction in consumer spending. Dow, IBM and SAP announce they will lay off thousands of workers.
Layoffs in Hasbro
Economic uncertainty is spreading to sectors beyond technology and media. Hasbro Inc said it will eliminate 15% of its global workforce this year. The toy and entertainment company said the reduction, which will affect around 1,000 jobs, will take effect in the next few weeks.
Drop in sales
Retail companies have seen their sales decline, especially during the crucial holiday season as consumers cut back on discretionary purchases amid rampant inflation and recession fears.
Hasbro also released preliminary results for the fourth quarter, showing that revenue fell 17% to $1.68 billion compared to the previous year.
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Hasbro share price
The stock has fallen 29% in the last 12 months. After that in the new year HAS stock price rose, this week saw a significant drop from above 65.0 to 60.50.
Layoffs in Dow, IBM and SAP
In the US alone, more than 150 tech companies have announced plans to lay off 55,000 jobs since early January.
Dow, IBM and SAP have joined a line of companies planning to shed thousands of jobs to prepare for a deteriorating economic outlook.
Unlike Microsoft Corp. and Google parent Alphabet Inc., which announced more layoffs this month, the companies did not drastically increase staff numbers during the pandemic. Instead, the leaders of these global giants said they were shrinking to accommodate slowing growth or to respond to weaker demand for their products.
Many CEOs say companies are starting to look more closely at hiring.
Four companies have cut more than 10,000 jobs this week, a fraction of the total workforce. Still, the decisions mark a shift in sentiment in the executive suites, where many leaders are retaining workers after struggling to hire and retain them in recent years as the pandemic disrupted jobs.
Planned layoffs of 3,000 employees at SAP affect about 2.5% of the business software maker's global workforce.
Chemical giant Dow said on Thursday it was laying off about 2,000 employees. The Midland, Michigan company says it currently employs about 37,800 people. Management said they intend to cut costs by $1 billion this year and close some assets.
According to IBM's latest annual report, the plan to eliminate around 3,900 roles would mean a 1.4% reduction in workforce to 280,000.
Not all companies are on layoffs.
Walmart Inc., the country's largest private employer, said this week it was raising starting wages for U.S. hourly workers to $14 from $12, amid a still tight labor market for frontline workers.
Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. said on Thursday it planned to hire 15,000 new employees to work at its restaurants, while aircraft maker Airbus SE said it would hire more than 13,000 new employees this year. Airbus said 9,000 new jobs will be located in Europe, with the rest in the US, China and other countries.
Dow share prices
Dow Inc shares rose in the new year until they finally stopped below 60.00.
IBM share prices
IBM shares have fallen drastically recently. IBM stock prices are below 135.00.
SAP share prices
SAP shares similarly to IBM rose in the new year, and recently started its decline. Currently, SAP share prices have fallen from 116.16 to 114.10.
Source: wsj.com, finance.yahoo.com
