 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
差不多占总员工的3.5个百分点。3 n2 u% P- B& x3 Q. ?% L
& H) s2 q8 h; [* ~9 b8 p1 f
Finning Canada has laid off 160 salaried staff in Alberta and B.C. as sales of Caterpillar equipment slows in the economic downturn.6 i, R. _/ R3 y- F" S" n
3 e$ C" f! m* q. c
Every office and every staff level, from support staff to management, in both provinces were affected, human resources vice-president Miles Hunt said Thursday.
1 ^) e2 ]3 w& t# S, n" R- L- J2 Z, x2 |. I
Twenty-nine people lost their jobs in Edmonton, where Finning Canada has its head office.
3 t4 \0 n' v/ A$ |. h0 e: U# b
& r- g. a) @& a; d"It's the toughest decision we have to make in our business life, and it's been a hard few days for us," Hunt said.
8 Y0 S3 n0 E' w( ]
" Y# _5 a* o2 z" j) {* VIt brings Finning Canada's workforce down to about 4,300.
+ b& c4 ~3 Y0 W: n+ N7 o! q& |. |" d# M9 ^( C4 u i
No hourly workers - who service and rebuild construction and mining equipment - are affected.
0 S9 c- n; e) A9 Z* t [5 h" y' i3 i( z
In fact, the company is still hiring mechanics and technicians, Hunt said.
0 C1 n) J! E4 W: q
p \1 r: R9 ~ K7 [8 R: c"That's the paradoxical thing. Even though things are changing, Fort McMurray (Alta.) is still growing, and we need more people up there," he said.
. h/ G# T& O6 V- V, V# K; X: ~+ H, Z
"It's our customers who are going to get us through this, and that's the last place we want to cut."
0 B& e9 W! J! V+ M
- N4 k0 b- }5 B: K# mThe recent delays and cancellations of oilsands projects - a major income source for Finning - was not a factor in the layoffs, Hunt said.) Q" t% V1 D# S# U- q: X6 @% J" X
' f% y4 s( G, D* |
"We're still very busy in the oilsands."% K: y5 q1 a8 [8 U) r9 ~7 E7 U
# a1 i+ t1 _- ?Hunt said Finning has been immune to recent downturns, but is now being affected by slowing sales in some areas.
0 w% _+ }4 P% G/ f3 }3 y( S8 G0 |) ?* z( K- k) y
They will continue to monitor the situation, but "we can't say it's the end" of layoffs, he added.; B+ n/ m8 F& W2 t3 T
. i4 [8 E1 m2 s1 F! N$ YThe employees, most of whom got the bad news Wednesday, will get severance packages and outplacement help, he said.
# K# }: o: a4 i! O% `1 p2 y3 ^" M- D. B
Mike Waites, CEO of Vancouver-based parent company Finning International Inc., recently lowered the 2008 earnings guidance due to a slowdown in some of its businesses in Western Canada and the United Kingdom.* {% j- J# J7 [8 c/ n: W+ q& r4 w
) C8 F( \6 k7 P. f' u( i+ k
Demand for new equipment will likely soften and some purchases may be deferred, but that will result in an increase in its parts and service business - Finning's most profitable business - he said.# I# x1 f1 v3 b/ D
5 U& Q9 M5 e7 O6 q
Finning reported third-quarter net income of $64.8 million compared to $63.6 million for the same quarter last year. Revenues were a record $1.46 billion, compared to $1.33 billion a year before.: ?9 D% ]- W) l* y* ~9 T
2 M; ^4 F8 x$ H! t/ ? d
Its order backlog has also grown to a new record of $2 billion, dominated by mining equipment, "and provides good revenue visibility for 2009 and into 2010," Waites said. |
|