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Lower profits fuel layoffs
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September 23, 1997: 8:32 p.m. ET
Companies with sagging earnings cut jobs to improve the bottom line
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Despite a jobless rate now at a 24-year low, not everything is rosy for U.S. workers, an employment expert said Tuesday.
The past three months have seen a surge of 35,300 layoffs fueled by companies with lower earnings. And with a wave of mergers expected this fall, employees should be prepared to seek new jobs, said John Challenger, executive vice president at Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc.
"You never know if you're going to be the next one," Challenger said on CNNfn. "You could be the top performer in your company, but if that company decides to merge … you see this continual pressure to put together organizations and then condense them."
Challenger told CNNfn's "Who's in Charge," that his outplacement firm has seen an increase in business. Companies typically hire an outplacement firm to help employees who lose their jobs. Business always picks up in the fall, he said, when decision-makers are back from vacation and ready to make the hard choices.
Most recently, analysts have predicted the Eastman Kodak Co. could announce up to 13,000 layoffs after reporting that earnings could be below expectations.
"That would be the highest layoff number of the year if it takes place," Challenger said.
The good news is that many of those people may not have to be unemployed for long. The average amount of time for someone out of work is about three months, Challenger said. About 85 percent of people who lose their jobs find equivalent or better positions.
"Those are good numbers," said Challenger. "The thing is, you don't know how long that job is going to last anymore." 
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