
Computer Sector Ranks No. 5 in Job Cuts
Although the computer industry generated the fifth largest number of job cuts last year, it’s poised to post strong gains in certain slivers of the sector in the new year, according to a Challenger, Gray & Christmas report released Friday.
The computer sector lost 35,136 jobs last year, according to the report, as Hewlett-Packard cut tens of thousands of employees from its payroll and companies like Cisco and Intel also announced large cuts. In the month of December alone, the computer sector lost 5,578 jobs – up more than five times the amount lost the same period a year ago. Despite the grim news, the computer sector managed to exit 2013 with fewer layoffs overall than 2012, notes Challenger Gray. In fact, job cuts were down 24 percent in the computer sector last year and the industry ranked third in terms of hiring announcements, with 26,000 employees added to the payroll. “Our hiring total represents a tiny fraction of the actual job creation, since most employers do not formally announce hiring plans. Computer science, information technology, electronics manufacturing and telecommunications will continue to be strong job generators in the 2014 economy,” says John Challenger, CEO of the Chicago outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. He added the computer sector will benefit as new companies form and existing companies expand their products and services related to Big Data, cloud computing, and security.
