November 14th, 2008
The mass exodus of the technology industry
Everywhere I look at the moment there are job cuts here, mass lay-off’s there, unemployment rising and a crumbling global economy. Whilst students are working their arses off trying to cram for pre-Christmas exams, it opens up a world full of worry for students who are near graduation. With so many job cuts in the technology industry, why would companies recruit fresh-out-of-university graduates after so many lay-offs?
They wouldn’t; simple answer.
From last calendar month to today, we’re hearing more and more technology giants losing staff due to the economic crisis which we’re all struggling with, in one way or another.
- British Telecom: the biggest telecommunications company in the UK, if not Europe;. 10,000 employees facing the cut.
- Sun Microsystems: world leader in open-source development and creator of Java; 5,000-6,000 employees, which is around 15% of the entire corporation, is lost.
- Hewlett Packard: largest technology company in the world; 25,000 staff cut worldwide and 3,400 in the UK.
- BBC: one of the biggest broadcasters in the world, most influential in UK: hundreds of jobs speculated to be lost.
- Yellow Pages: advertisement directory listings company for other businesses; 350 jobs being chopped next year.
- GlaxoSmithKline: more evil than Microsoft, huge pharmaceutical firm which jacks up the price on medication so ultimately only the sick people get hurt; 620 jobs gone already and another 1,000 deservedly gone soon.
- Virgin Media: huge cable and broadband provider in the UK; cutting 2,200 jobs by 2012.
- Nokia-Siemens Networks: telecommunications giant, probably biggest in the world; cutting 1,820 jobs mostly in Europe.
- IBM: world leader in technology, builds supercomputers; cutting 215 senior posts and 38 regular jobs.
You know, I could go on and on. I think you get the point that technology companies are now shedding as much “surplus” of the workforce off as they can in a bid to save money, so that they all don’t go under.
Whilst the GBP is dropping against the USD, it seems only I’m celebrating the currency rates. That is, because I’m earning more as a result. It sucks, but for those who are working in the UK and being paid in USD, you guys are really reaping the advantages of the exchange rates.
As many think the global financial crisis is easing off because the stocks and shares are balancing out, the long drawn out consequences of our capitalist ways will be seen for years to come. Although I certainly don’t agree with everything he says, it looks like Karl Marx was right.
Zack Whittaker, the youngest in the ZDNet network, is a British student at the University of Kent, Canterbury, where he studies BA (Hons) Criminology and Social Policy. His insight into the next-generation is unique and first-hand, sharing his knowledge of the here and now but more so what's next and how to get there.
You can read his public biography and his work disclosures of his current and past industry affiliations.
Fire off an email if you feel like sharing a story or insight, or leave a voicemail. You can also follow him on Twitter to keep up to date with his ramblings.
Subscribe to iGeneration via Email alerts or RSS.
