AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT FIELDCORE SERVICE SOLUTIONS

Tampa, Florida-based FieldCore Service Solutions, a subsidiary of General Electric that provides field operations staffing, mainly to the power industry, has announced that it shutting down operations in Wilmington, North Carolina. The shut down will impact 261 employees who mostly work from home and travel to remote work assignments as directed.

A company spokesman noted that the layoff was not associated with the recent COVID-19 pandemic and "FieldCore is closing its nuclear field service operation because its customer, GEH [General Electric Hitachi], has elected to use another vendor for the provision of field services. GEH has made a strategic business decision to consolidate the majority of outage and inspection services work under one primary vendor, Houston, Texas-based Sonic Systems beginning in June 2020."

GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy is a joint venture between General Electric and Hitachi that provides advanced nuclear reactor technology and services to the nuclear industry.

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?

LEGENDARY GE EXECUTIVE JACK WELCH, DEAD AT 84

Jack Welch (John Francis Welch Jr.), the legendary chairman and CEO of General Electric (1981 and 2001) passed away at home in New York on March 1, 2020, from kidney issues.

Known as “Neutron Jack” for his willingness to fire large numbers of people using a process laughingly called “rank and yank” which saw the under-performing ten-percent of employees being terminated. He was a student of management practices and did not hesitate to revive old processes or try new systems and procedures – freely teaching and mentoring others along the way.

While some of his practices were controversial, he built GE into a powerhouse conglomerate whose stock provided an extraordinary and stable yield to investors over the years.

I know it is unusual to fete a man who has fired thousands of employees in the name of management efficiency and earnings performance but by clearing away the deadwood and undergrowth he created a stronger organization and provided opportunities for high achievers who might have been trapped in an organizational maze.

He will be missed. Rest in Peace Jack.

NO LOVE AT GE LOCOMOTIVES IN ERIE, PENNSYLVANIA

General Electric Transportation is planning to end most of its locomotive manufacturing operations at their 100-year-old plant in Erie, Pennsylvania which will result in the loss of approximately 575 jobs. GE’s workforce totals about 2,000 people performing mostly non-manufacturing duties. Of course, if the company decides to cut-back on management, the cuts could run deeper. Manufacturing for international customers will be shifted to Fort Worth, Texas, where approximately 225 workers may be recalled after a previous layoff at the Texas plant.

One of the dangers posed by Wall Street are activist investors who, like the legendary character Gordon Gecko, see their duty as maximizing shareholder value at any cost. And, all too often, executives fearful for their jobs have little choice other than to resign or implement dramatic cost savings measures which usually is a code phrase for moving to a more tax friendly environment and shedding personnel.

According to Bloomberg News, “The Boston-based manufacturer agreed earlier this year to deeper cost cuts through 2018 following discussions with shareholder Trian Fund Management, the firm co-founded by [activist investor] Nelson Peltz.

Nelson Peltz's investment firm Trian Partners has disclosed a new stake in General Electric (GE).  Trian now apparently owns 98.5 million shares of GE worth around $2.5 billion.

Of the stake, Peltz said that "We invested in GE because it is undervalued and underappreciated by the market despite what we believe is a transformation that will allow its world-class industrial businesses to drive attractive shareowner returns.  Our recent discussions with Jeff and his team have solidified our belief that they are highly motivated to fully deliver on GE's transformation and share much common ground with Trian on ways to improve long-term shareowner value." For those wishing to read Trian’s whitepaper on GE, it can be found here.

Jamie Miller, the chief executive officer of GE Transportation, was quoted as saying, “We’ve been operating in a challenged North American locomotive market.” Of course, he was quick to add, “This action is taken so we can be as competitive as we can be.”

Watch a Katie Couric interview with an employee and a union representative from the Erie GE Locomotive facility and how jobs were transferred from unionized Pennsylvania to a non-union Texas facility to capture tax incentives. It's one side of the story and openly acknowledges that jobs have been lost to technology and unionization. Couric was even-handed as she asked the union rep straight out if the union is responsible for the loss of jobs.

It pays for employees of large public companies to keep their eyes on company information that is freely available through the SEC’s EDGAR (Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis, and Retrieval ) site.

Are you asking yourself, Am I Next?