Motorola To Cut Up to 4,000 Jobs

Motorola Inc. (NYSE:MOT) disclosed plans Friday to cuts
as many as 4,000 jobs, or about 3 percent of its work force, from its
semiconductor operations by the end of the year–its third round of employee
cuts in 10 weeks.

Motorola, the world’s No. 3 maker of semiconductors and No. 2 in cellphones, has
been suffering from a slowdown in the semiconductor market and falling
profitability in its cellphone operations.

While semiconductor sales rose 7
percent in the fourth quarter to $1.9 billion, totaling $7.9 billion for the
year, orders slipped by 19 percent.

Last month it eliminated 2,500 jobs at its cellphone manufacturing facility in
Harvard, Ill., and in December disclosed 2,870 layoffs in Iowa, Florida and
Ireland as part of a moneysaving shift to more outsourcing of its cellphone
production.

No specific locations for the job cuts were announced. The Schaumburg, IL-based company’s semiconductor operations are based in Austin, TX.

Motorola said the reductions, which will be made through a combination of
attrition and layoffs, are aimed at helping to boost efficiency and improving
profitability.

“While job reductions are extremely painful, they are a necessary part of our
cost-reduction needs,” said Fred Shlapak, president of the semiconductor
products sector.
He said some of the job cuts will take place by the end of March while others
will occur later in the year.