http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,43101,00.html Feds: Chicken Little Is Lying by Declan McCullagh and Ryan Sager 2:00 a.m. Apr. 18, 2001 PDT WASHINGTON -- Everyone knows by now that this is supposed to be a perilous time to hold a technology-related job. Well-publicized layoffs at bellwether firms such as Yahoo, Cisco and Ericsson have spooked current employees, while leaving hundreds of thousands of their former officemates hunting for jobs. Citing a slowing economy, old-guard companies such as Disney, Visa and Dupont have also slashed payrolls. So why, then, is the overall number of jobs in the computer industry steadily increasing? Preliminary figures from the U.S. Department of Labor show that between February and March of this year, companies in the computer and data processing sector added -- not dropped -- a combined total of 12,000 jobs. In fact, the March 2001 data show a jump of 100,000 jobs from a year ago. While that may not cheer up someone who's been laid off and searching for new work, the numbers suggest that the job market is not as moribund as many people think. Because U.S. unemployment has remained relatively constant -- it was 4.3 percent last month -- laid-off workers seem to be rehired pretty quickly. [...] One explanation for the difference between public opinion and reality is that corporate layoffs almost always draw news reports, while announcements of job opportunities do not. Another explanation is that announcements of layoffs are skyrocketing -- but actual layoffs are not. The Employment Policy Foundation, a think tank in Washington, released a study earlier this month that said the rate of announced job cuts jumped 113 percent in the last nine months compared to the first half of last year. But, the group concluded, actual job losses increased only nine percent. [...] ------------------------------------------------------------------------- POLITECH -- Declan McCullagh's politics and technology mailing list You may redistribute this message freely if it remains intact. To subscribe, visit http://www.politechbot.com/info/subscribe.html This message is archived at http://www.politechbot.com/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------
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