Fed: Major job losses this year
14 Apr 2009 6:32 PM
MAJOR JOB LOSSES THIS YEAR
More than 10,000 jobs cuts have been announced in the first four months of the year. Below are some of the major losses:
April 14 - Qantas cuts 500 management jobs, and says up to 1,250 full time positions at the airline will also be affected as it reduces flying capacity by up to five per cent - the equivalent of grounding 10 aircraft - due to a dramatic downturn in the aviation industry.
- Lihir Gold sheds 200 workers from its underperforming mining operation in Ballarat.
April 9 - Upmarket appliance retailer Kleenmaid is put into voluntary administration with the loss of 150 jobs.
April 7 - Rio Tinto sheds 135 full-time jobs and 570 contractor positions after slashing bauxite production at its Weipa mine in north Queensland and pulling back on a refinery expansion project.
- Mineral sands miner Iluka Resources axes 135 jobs in Western Australia and cuts its annual production forecast due to weak demand.
- Construction and mining equipment manufacturer Caterpillar cuts 280 jobs from its 700-strong Tasmanian workforce.
March 31 - Truck trailer manufacturer MaxiTRANS cuts 54 of its 380 workers at its Ballarat plant in regional Victoria.
- Telstra cuts a further 70 jobs from its Sensis division with the closure of a call centre for the Trading Post newspaper in Sydney. The decision came about two weeks after Telstra sacked 150 Sensis staff, including 128 from Victoria.
March 26 - BHP Billiton axes 400 Queensland coal mining contract workers at mines in Norwich Park at Dysart and Goonyella at Moranbah.
- Australia Zoo, at Beerwah in the Sunshine Coast hinterland north of Brisbane, announces it will lay off 26 staff.
- Rio Tinto shuts down its HIsmelt pig iron plant in WA for 12 months with the loss of 100 jobs.
March 25 - Electronics firm NEC axes 153 jobs including 100 research and development workers from its Mulgrave plant in Melbourne.
March 13 - 400 workers at a Hans Continental Smallgoods meat processing plant in Blacktown to lose their jobs when the plant closes down next month after failing to attract a new buyer.
March 11 - West Australian meat exporter Harvey Beef cuts 120 full-time and 40 contract positions from its plant south of Perth.
March 6 - Bank of Queensland announces 150 job cuts, primarily at the head office in Brisbane.
March 3 - Aviation company Boeing says it will cut up to 90 jobs, mainly from its Brisbane operations
March 2 - Miner Anglo Coal Australia lays off 650 staff and contractors - 60 voluntary and 120 other redundancies among company staff, and a reduction of 470 contractor positions.
March 2 - Car parts maker Robert Bosch axes up to 170 jobs in Melbourne, blaming the cuts on the global financial crisis.
February 26 - Property developer Lend Lease cuts 1,700 jobs - 20 per cent (about 340) of which will come from Australia, the remainder from offshore.
February 25 - Clothing manufacturer Pacific Brands cuts 1,850 jobs in Victoria, NSW and Queensland, and moves production of its iconic Australian brands including Bonds and King Gee to China.
February 25 - The receivers of Drivetrain Systems International lay off 229 workers at the firm's gearbox factory in Albury, NSW. Another 167 workers are guaranteed contract work for two months, which will then only continue if a buyer is found.
February 17 - The world's largest nickel producer, Russia's Norilsk Nickel, cuts about 330 jobs as it suspends its two nickel operations in Western Australia - Black Swan and Lake Johnston.
February 9 - PMP Printing cuts 76 jobs in South Australia and Queensland due to a downturn in demand for heat set printing.
January 29 - Whitegoods manufacturer Electrolux cuts 40 jobs in Australia as part of a global restructure in response to the economic downturn.
January 29 - Australia's biggest luxury boat builder Riviera cuts 117 staff on the Gold Coast. In 2008 the company cut more than 300 staff from its Coomera headquarters in response to the downturn.
January 21 - Mining giant BHP Billiton announces big cuts to its global workforce, with a heavy impact in Western Australia and Queensland.
- In WA, 1,450 jobs go when BHP closes the Ravensthorpe nickel mine, while another 300 workers are laid off as production is reduced at the Mount Keith nickel mine near Kalgoorlie.
- In Queensland, more than 1,000 positions are to be phased out from BHP's metallurgical coal operations across the state, while as many as 400 jobs are cut from the Yabulu nickel plant near Townsville.
January 21 - David Jones sheds 150 head office staff as the retailer is hit by the slowing economy.
January 19 - Contractor Thiess cuts up to 40 jobs from the Burton Downs coal mine, west of Mackay.
January 13 - Mining giant Xstrata lays off 150 workers at its Handlebar Hill lead and zinc mine near Mt Isa. In December 2008, the company shed 230 workers at its Oaky Creek No 1 coal mine at Tieri, in central Queensland.
