Abbott To Cut Up To 1,000 Diagnostics Jobs
4 CommentsBy Ed Silverman // August 21st, 2008 // 3:09 pm
The drugmaker plans to eliminate the positions over the next four years as part of a plan to streamline operations and cut costs in its medical diagnostics business, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The streamlining includes the closing of a clinical chemistry plant in South Pasadena, California and transferring production of some diagnostic products to plants in Europe that are closer to a big part of the company’s customer base, an Abbott spokeswoman tells Reuters.
When completed, the cost cutting should provide about $150 million in annual pretax savings. In the meantime, the company plans to take pretax charges of about $370 million for the program over the next several years, according to the SEC filing.
Just A Thought
It never ceases to amaze me how many of our jobs are being lost to workers overseas. On one hand you could blame rising labor costs, (insurance bennies, etc.), union interference, and stringent regulation concerning things such as toxic waste and employee rights.
On the other hand you have to think that the biggest boon for big business is that they provide jobs, which in return helps to support our government through income taxes and creates a condition for our citizens to keep the economy rolling. So that in the event that they get tax breaks people can at least think that these corporations are giving something back.
Maybe to take the work from our citizens will cause them to fall out of government favor? I’m not talking about pharma specifically, just that they seem to be fully participating in this disturbing trend.
I know this Canadian lady who bought a Toyota and said she’d never buy domestic again. I asked her what cars are domestic to Canada and she told me GM, Ford, Chevy… most of the american models. Nice for them ain’t it? It wasn’t all that long ago that their dollar outperformed ours for a time.
harpy
You’re catching on. Remember - people don’t make this country great, corporations do.
Just A Thought
Not if they take their business elsewhere though (which was my point and which they are doing). I’m just curious how long they will have such support under this situation that they are helping to create. Or rather, how can they not expect us to want low prices while they are adding to the unemployment rolls? Times are tight and they want to be exempt from feeling the squeeze so they move out and make the squeeze worse.
Of course there is no excuse when pharma acts irresponsibly- no matter how vital they may be. Pharma reduces it’s own value to society when people are having more illnesses as a direct result of bad reactions to medication, for instance, raising the cost of health care. It gets to making you wonder what their value is if not for providing domestic jobs and a healthier society.
Just A Thought
I got your sarcasm
;-)