AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT ORACLE (08/08/22)

OCTOBER 16, 2022 — 201 LAYOFFS IN REDWOOD CITY AND BELMONT CALIFORNIA

The company continues to reduce its headcount, this time with 201 employees laid off from its former headquarters in Redwood City and nearby Belmont. The layoffs include data scientists, developers, and marketing specialists.

AUGUST 8, 2022 — HUNDREDS OF LAYOFFS

The company has announced that it has laid off hundreds of employees this week as the business software provider prioritizes its healthcare IT services and cloud businesses

The job cuts principally hit staff at Oracle’s advertising and customer experience group that sells services to help clients analyze data about their customers and target advertising to those customers.

JULY 15, 2022 — ORACLE PRE-FLOATING MASS LAYOFF?

According to reports in the financial media, “Oracle is reportedly set to lay off thousands of employees in a bid to cut operating expenses by as much as $1 billion. The news comes barely a month after Oracle posted a 28% drop in operating income for the fiscal quarter ending May 31, 2022. IS THIS A RED FLAG?

DECEMBER 11, 2020 — MASS LAFOFFS AHEAD AS ORACLE MOVES HEADQUARTERS TO AUSTIN, TEXAS

Oracle has announced that it will be relocating its Redwood City, California headquarters to Austin, Texas.

According to a company spokesperson, “Oracle is implementing a more flexible employee work location policy and has changed its Corporate Headquarters from Redwood City, California to Austin, Texas. We believe these moves best position Oracle for growth and provide our personnel with more flexibility about where and how they work.

“In addition, we will continue to support major hubs for Oracle around the world, including those in the United States such as Redwood City, Austin, Santa Monica, Seattle, Denver, Orlando, and Burlington, among others, and we expect to add other locations over time. By implementing a more modern approach to work, we expect to further improve our employees’ quality of life and quality of output.”

MAY 30, 2019 — CONTINUING LAYOFFS BEING DISGUISED BY ORACLE

Over the last few weeks and months, Oracle has laid off hundreds of employees at the Seattle office once viewed as the future of its cloud computing strategy, according to a report.

Business Insider reported last week that the Seattle layoffs affected 300 people and came as part of cuts across Oracle’s cloud teams said to involve as many as several thousand layoffs across the broader company. But the Seattle cuts are notable given the mission that group was assigned: to make Oracle relevant in cloud computing using talent from Cloud City.

An Oracle representative did not respond to a request for comment.

MARCH 28, 2019 — Original post…

Redwood City, California-based Oracle Corporation, the iconic database company headed by multi-billionaire Larry Ellison continues to re-position the company to capitalize on cloud computing and services. Oracle, like IBM, rarely announces reductions in force and continually explains restructuring activities in terms of transitioning to cloud computing. According to anonymous sources reporting on “layoff” websites, the reduction in force is estimated to be between 500 and 5,000 employees, both domestically and abroad. Not atypical for a company with an estimated headcount of 140,000 employees.

An email from Oracle EVP Don Johnson noted, “Today’s changes within OCI [Oracle Cloud Infrastructure} will better align with Larry's [Oracle Chairman and Chief Technology Officer Larry Ellison] vision of the business. It will streamline our products and services, focus investments on our most strategic priorities, and help us to more effectively and rapidly deliver the full promise and reach of Oracle's Gen 2 Cloud. OCI’s business is stronger than ever, and this team’s future is bright.” Of course, many of those terminated wonder why if the business is stronger than ever and the team’s future is bright, why they were laid off.

Like everything Ellison, sometimes reality is brutal and the company foregoes any measure of grace. Some managers were forced to eliminate team members, not knowing that they were the next to go after the task was completed.

According to WARN (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification) notices filed with the State of California, on May 21, it will permanently layoff 255 workers in its Redwood City headquarters, and another 97 in the nearby Santa Clara offices. Most of those laid off are said to be software developers.

Like all corporations, a company spokesperson provided the insincere corporate-speak: “As our cloud business grows, we will continually balance our resources and restructure our development group to help ensure we have the right people delivering the best cloud products to our customers around the world.”

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?

AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT MACY'S (09/07/24)

SEPTEMBER 7, 2024 — 55 STORES BY END OF 2024

The company has announced that it will close 55 stores by the end of 2024, part of the 150 locations it planned to close within three years.

JANUARY 19, 2024 — 5 STORES AND 2,350 JOBS

Responding to activist investors, including Arkhouse Management and Brigade Capital, who want to assume control, the company has announced the closure of 5 stores and a 3.5% reduction in headcount, including 13% corporate staff.

The reduction in force will impact 2,350 employees.

According to a company spokesperson, “As we prepare to deploy a new strategy to meet the needs of an ever-changing consumer and marketplace, we made the difficult decision to reduce our workforce by 3.5% to become a more streamlined company.”

IT’S GOOD TO BE ON TOP

According to SEC filings, Macy’s gave executives $9 million in equity in restricted stock.

Macy’s CEO Jeff Gennette received restricted stock worth $3.7 million. Five other executives, including legal chief Elisa Garcia and human resources chief Danielle Kirgan, received varying amounts ranging from $350,000 to $3 million.

JUNE 25, 2020 — RESTRUCTURING WILL COST 3,900 CORPORATE LAYOFFS

The company has announced that it is going forward with their restructuring and cost reduction with a reduction in force that will impact 3% of the total workforce, approximately 3,900 management and corporate employees. This represents about 25% of the corporate workforce.

A company spokesperson “announced details of a restructuring that will align its cost base with anticipated near-term sales as the business recovers from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the closure of stores from March 18 through May 4, 2020 and gradual re-opening.”

“The company will reduce corporate and management headcount by approximately 3,900. Additionally, Macy’s, Inc. has reduced staffing across its stores portfolio, supply chain and customer support network, which it will adjust as sales recover.”

“COVID-19 has significantly impacted our business. While the re-opening of our stores is going well, we do anticipate a gradual recovery of business, and we are taking action to align our cost base with our anticipated lower sales. These were hard decisions as they impact many of our colleagues. I want to thank all of our colleagues – those who have been active and those on furlough – for helping us get through this difficult time, and I want to express my deep gratitude to the colleagues who are departing for their service and contributions. We look forward to welcoming back many of our furloughed colleagues the first week of July.”

“We know that we will be a smaller company for the foreseeable future, and our cost base will continue to reflect that moving forward. Our lower cost base combined with the approximately $4.5 billion in new financing will also make us a more stable, flexible company.”

FEBRUARY 8, 2020 — MACY’S TO CLOSE 125 STORES. LAYOFF 831 WORKERS AT MACYS.COM AND RELOCATE TECH AND HQ OPERATIONS.

In addition to closing 125 stores nationwide, the company has announced that it is laying off 831 employees at its Macys.com division in San Francisco, California and shift the technical operations to installations in Atlanta, Georgia, and New York. The layoffs will be staged between April 2020 and August 2020.

According to a company spokesperson, “After careful consideration, Macy’s offices in San Francisco will close. We believe these changes will eliminate any duplication of efforts, bringing these teams closer to our business teams and strategy.”

It is estimated that 2,000 “corporate” jobs will be affected by the store closures and shifts in corporate operations.

The company’s “Polaris” initiative will see the company transferring all corporate activities to New York City, New York and shutting down its corporate offices San Francisco, California, Lorain, Ohio. and its headquarters building in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Macy’s Chairman and CEO Jeff Gennette noted, “We will focus our resources on the healthy parts of our business, directly address the unhealthy parts of the business and explore new revenue streams. Over the past three years, we have shown we can grow the top-line; however, we have significant work to do to improve the bottom-line. We are taking the organization through significant structural change to lower costs, bring teams closer together and reduce duplicative work. The changes we are making are deep and impact every area of the business, but they are necessary.”

Major pain for employees is on the horizon and scheduled to occur over the next three years.

SEPTEMBER 30, 2019 — MACY’S TO CLOSE LANDMARK SEATTLE, WASHINGTON STORE. HUNDREDS TO LOSE JOBS.

Macy’s has announced the closure of its Seattle store in February 2020 with clearance sales starting in January 2020.

According to a company spokesperson, “After careful consideration, Macy’s, Inc. has decided to sell the Downtown Seattle Macy’s building.

It appears that the decision to shutter the store and sell the building was driven by changing customer purchasing trends and the value of real estate assets exceeding operational revenue contributions to the bottom line.

Previous post…

Responding to a lackluster 2018 fourth quarter that produced sluggish same-store sales, Cincinnati, Ohio-based Macy’s, the iconic department store retailer, announced a restructuring effort during their fourth quarter financial results presentation.

According to Jeff Gennette, Macy's, Inc. chairman & chief executive officer, “Macy’s is heading into 2019 a stronger business than we were a year ago - with healthier stores, a growing e-commerce business and a mobile experience that is resonating with our customers. We are executing a balanced investment strategy that supports all three of these components, with investment directed towards areas we know have the highest returns. We are also a more agile and flexible organization. The steps we are announcing to further streamline our management structure will allow us to move faster, reduce costs and be more responsive to changing customer expectations. Importantly, these changes build the foundation we need to achieve meaningful enterprise productivity improvements. These actions impact colleagues who have made strong contributions to the company over the years, and I thank them for their service.”

In addition to an estimated reduction in force of 100 senior management positions, it should come as no surprise that the the company has announced an additional reduction in force in their Systems and Technology Field Services and Operational Unit headquartered in Bay Shore, New York.

According to a WARN (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification) approximately 57 IT-related jobs will be eliminated and the work transitioned to NCR, which is functioning as a business process outsource vendor.

According to a company spokesperson, “We’re always looking at the best way to provide technology support to our company. Macy’s has made changes to outsource many field services organization functions. We are working closely with our external vendor to encourage impacted Macy’s colleagues to apply for the many new roles being created at as a result of this transition.”

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 ... are you now wondering, Am I Next?

AM I NEXT? PANIC IN HOLLYWOOD As FOX LAYOFFS COMMENCE

Face it, most people assume that “Hollywood,” the euphemism for the entertainment industry, is a massive enterprise. However, when compared to some of the larger industrial and commercial industries it is a relatively small industry. So when an acquisition claims an estimated 4,000 jobs, it is a tsunami-level event. Especially for those long-time employees who had to fight their way into the industry, work for substandard wages, and then produce excellent work year-after-year to achieve their present positions. The layoffs will commence after the deal officially closes and will start with senior executives and work its way downward to mid-level managers and supervisors as Disney and Fox begin integrating and consolidating duplicative and redundant functions and positions.

The traditional corporate-speak rings hollow…

From: Studio – Alan Horn & Alan Bergman

Subject: A New Chapter for The Walt Disney Studios

With the announcement that the Disney-Fox deal is officially complete, we begin an exciting new chapter in the history of both our companies and the industry. This is a major piece of the bold strategy Bob Iger has set for The Walt Disney Company as our business rapidly evolves.

It’s astounding and humbling to consider the rich, dynamic legacies of these storied studios and the endless possibilities ahead as we unite them. It’s not something we take for granted as leaders, and we are looking forward to working together to build a team of unparalleled creativity and innovation.

We’ve learned a lot in meetings held prior to deal close, yet there are many things that could not be discussed for regulatory reasons. We are happy to now have the chance to really understand and share how we operate at the ground level – and we realize we are only at the beginning of the process.

Although there is much to look forward to, we know this integration will entail quite a bit of change across our organizations. We want to acknowledge that and assure you we are committed to engaging in this process thoughtfully and communicating changes as we are able – most importantly with respect for all involved.

We’ll be making announcements very soon about our senior leadership structure. It will take some time to reach our future fully integrated state. Day-to-day, our top priorities remain the same: to support the great content we’re creating and deliver a superb experience to our consumers, and to continue to build an inspiring, inclusive environment where employees can bring their best to work every day.

As we start this journey of bringing together the combined might of Disney and 21st Century Fox to create the best entertainment studio, we’d like to thank you all for everything you’ve done to bring us to this point and for your continued focus, support, and patience as we proceed.

Sincerely,

Alan Horn, Chairman, The Walt Disney Studios

Alan Bergman, President, The Walt Disney Studios

On the West side of Los Angeles, which is home to a large number of independent enterprises, the job market is heating up as employees with valuable skills transfer to independent production companies, and into allied fields that can benefit from Hollywood’s production values such as the advertising and public relations industries.

Many of the most-skilled employees noticed the handwriting on the wall and moved early to secure employment elsewhere.

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 ... are you now wondering, Am I Next?