PC giant announces new round of redundancies
Dell, the world’s largest PC manufacturer, has said it will cut 3,000 to 4,000 jobs and force other employees to take unpaid time off as it struggles with weak demand for computer systems and services.
The Round Rock, Texas-based company said the job cuts would occur over the next six months, mostly in Central Texas.
The announcement follows 1,700 layoffs announced in February and completed last month.
‘‘Obviously, this means the business isn’t getting better,’’ said Daniel Niles, an analyst for Lehman Brothers. ‘‘They see it’s going to be a rough couple of quarters, and they’ve got to get their cost structure in order.’’
Job losses were once unheard of at Dell, as double-digit gains in PC sales made it a stock market phenomenon in the late 1990s. The company expanded its work force rapidly until late last year, but then PC sales flattened and have yet to recover.
‘‘If the market drops off sharply and unexpectedly, you find yourself with something of an overhang in employment, and you have to adjust,’’ said Dell spokesman TR Reid.
Most of the job cuts will be in sales and marketing, engineering and other parts of the company in the Austin-Round Rock area, especially in management ranks and support services, Reid said.
Some manufacturing jobs will also will be cut. The company said it would consolidate all notebook computer production at a plant near Nashville instead of dividing it between Tennessee and a plant in Central Texas.
