Most Americans are keenly aware of the horrible economic state of affairs the country is facing. However, there is a small group of people — those with jobs and benefits — who don’t think the economic outlook is as bad as some say. In addition, they don’t understand that our problems are part of a larger and more systemic global economic problem that is just as impactful as what we experience directly at home. This essay is for such people to inform them of the dramatic changes that may suggest that the economy is not going to improve anytime soon.
On Thursday, Oct. 28, the pharmacy chain operator CVS Caremark announced it will eliminate 300 employees who work in customer support and other operations to reduce corporate costs. These job cuts will affect staffers across the country, but more than half are at the company’s customer support center at its headquarters in Woonsocket, R.I.
Astoria, New York-based Home Services Systems Inc., a home care agency that provides 1,900 seniors across the city with personal care services such as feeding, cleaning and bathing, reported it may be forced to and lay off more than 2,000 home attendants by year’s end after losing its long-standing contract with the city. The agency filed a notice with the state Labor Department on Oct. 14 that indicated 2,065 employees will be laid off as a result of the contract loss.
On Friday, Oct. 29, a report was leaked regarding plans for a large reduction in the workforce of the Savannah River Nuclear Solutions at the Savannah River Site in Aiken, S.C., by 2012, due to the completion of work under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. An internal memo details a phased workforce restructuring plan that would reduce the workforce by 1,400 employees, through a two-phased involuntary separation plan.
West Penn Allegheny Health System of Pittsburgh, Pa., announced that it also will be laying off employees. Four hundred workers will lose their jobs as part of an ongoing restructuring plan.
And states have had their own share of woes as well. New York Gov. David Paterson said he plans to lay off an additional 898 public employees by the end of the year.
I am just presenting this information to show people that it is bad and may even be getting worse. The sad truth is that this is not reported on television and it is beyond me why it isn’t. We all need to prepare ourselves for the future, because the economy will not be improving anytime soon.
–torrance stephens, ph.d.
