MW: Low oil prices blamed for job cuts: Challenger
Sharply lower oil prices are to blame for more than one-third of announced layoffs in February, outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas said.
In all, employers said last month they would cut 50,579 jobs, a 5% decrease from the previous month but 21% higher than the year-earlier period.
It is the third consecutive month planned job cuts exceed the comparable year-ago figure, Challenger said.
So far this year, employers said they would eliminate 103,620 jobs, a 19% increase from the announced layoffs during the first two months of 2014, the firm said.
Hardest hit is the energy sector, with 36,532 announced layoffs, or more than a third of all recorded job cuts, during the first two months, Challenger said. In February, 36% of all job cuts were blamed on oil prices, the firm said.
Schlumberger Ltd. (SLB), the world's largest oil-field service company, disclosed in January that it planned to cut about 9,000 jobs by the end of the first quarter.
Airlines, plastic and paint makers and even corn farmers have largely benefited from cheap oil, and economists project a boost in consumer spending.
Meanwhile, the retail sector has continued to bleed jobs, Challenger said, with the second-highest number of announced cuts in February, bringing its total for the year to 15,862, up about 4% from the year-ago period. RadioShack, which filed for bankruptcy in February, accounted for most of the retail-job losses in February, Challenger said.
