by: Belle Carter
(Natural News) The U.S. economy is still trapped in the midst of a looming collapse as more companies recently announced mass retrenchment, a clear indication that the tsunami of layoffs that started late last year is continuing to accelerate.
During the State of the Union Address, President Joe Biden boasted about the creation of 517,000 jobs in January – surpassing the upwardly revised figure of 260,000 in December and exceeding economist predictions of 185,000. Unemployment also fell to 3.4 percent, which is its lowest rate in 54 years. According to the POTUS, this is evidence that his economic plan is strengthening the U.S. financial state.
The Epoch Times contradicted this declaration, pointing out that without seasonal adjustment, the January 2023 number will be 2.5 million lower than that of December 2022. Additionally, according to a report from employment firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, last month was the worst January for job cuts since the Great Recession in 2009. (Related: Corporate America fires 13% of workforce, creates fewer jobs amid recession fears.)
“Around 40 percent of last month’s job reductions came in the tech industry, where Google parent company Alphabet, Amazon, Microsoft and Salesforce announced plans to lay off thousands of workers. Many of the companies said they grew too quickly in recent years and must cut costs to boost profitability,” the report stated.
Renowned author Michael Snyder wrote on the Economic Collapse blog that the staff reductions trend has definitely continued this month and proceeded to disclose 12 large firms that announced their workforce “streamlining” plans.
The Big Tech industry, which has been suffering for quite a while, continues with the trend as Yahoo eliminates 20 percent of its workforce, shutting down 1,000 positions earlier this month. Another tech giant, eBay, decided that four percent of their workers, or 500 jobs, are no longer needed. Web hosting companies GoDaddy and GitHub also downsized by eight percent and 10 percent, respectively. Also, the communications technology app Zoom axed approximately 1,300 employees, or 15 percent of its staff.
Meanwhile, entertainment conglomerate Disney is set to reduce its workforce by approximately 7,000 jobs, CEO Bob Iger said during the company’s first-quarter earnings call.
Financial companies are also firing employees. Affirm is cutting 19 percent of its workforce as second-quarter earnings fell below analyst estimates on both the top and bottom lines. JPMorgan Chase & Co. also cut down hundreds of mortgage employees as home-lending businesses continue to be hurt by elevated interest rates.
Semiconductor manufacturing company Micron followed suit by reducing its global headcount by about 10 percent over the next year to reduce costs and operating expenses as demand for its principal products wanes. Meanwhile, computer manufacturer Dell took off about 6,650 roles as it faces plummeting demand for personal computers.
Aircraft industry giant Boeing should have been hiring more workers, but instead, the company just announced that 2,000 positions in finance and human resources will be eliminated.
Lastly, online healthcare startup Nomad Health laid off around 20 percent of its corporate workforce recently, according to four terminated employees, as the surge in travel nurses and other temporary healthcare workers ignited by the pandemic cools down.
Studies: Layoff anxiety leads to a host of health conditions
The abrupt decisions of various firms to lay off employees who once thought they are secure in their positions may take a toll on health and wellness, according to studies.
Among the most comprehensive summaries of more than 300 studies on this showed that unemployed people are more distressed; less satisfied with their lives, marriages and families; and more likely to report psychological problems than the employed. Being made redundant has been linked to a much higher risk of suicide and higher rates of mortality more generally in the decades after being cut.
Another 2009 research found that for employees with no pre-existing health conditions, the likelihood of developing a health condition increases by 83 percent in the first 15 to 18 months after a layoff, with the most common conditions being stress-related illnesses, including hypertension, heart disease and arthritis.
Also, people who remained employed may be greatly affected. Not only have these cuts chipped away at the mental health of people in the workforce, but they also may be changing employees’ behavior to the point of stunting their career development.
Writing in Harvard Business Review, executive coach and author Melody Wilding said: “If you feel helpless in the face of upheaval at your company, you may retreat and pull back on your efforts, which renders you a more likely candidate for cuts.”
Visit EconomicRiot.com for more news related to mass layoffs caused by the impending economic collapse.
Watch the video below that talks about mass layoffs causing a loss of confidence in the U.S. dollar.
This video is from the What is happening channel on Brighteon.com.