Chip maker Lam Research cuts 600 jobs
LOS ANGELES, Nov 20 (Reuters) - U.S. chipmaker Lam Research Corp (LRCX.O) will shed 15 percent of its workforce, or 600 employees, joining the list of technology companies trying to cope with declining sales and rising costs by cutting jobs.
The circuitry-etching tools company expects to save about $60 million a year through the job reductions. The company will be reducing other costs to achieve further savings of about $20 million annually.
The job cuts will affect regular, temporary and contract employees, and are expected to be completed by the first quarter of next year, the company said.
Last month, Lam Research posted a sharp drop in earnings and projected slow demand for the rest of this year.
A teetering economy and slumping consumer confidence have hit the semiconductor industry hard.
With demand in electronic goods plummeting, the semiconductor industry has made large-scale layoffs. Top chipmaker Applied Materials (AMAT.O) announced a 12 percent cut of its workforce. National Semiconductor Corp (NSM.N) cut up to 10 percent, KLA-Tencor Corp (KLAC.O) up to 15 percent, and Akamai Technologies Inc (AKAM.O) 7 percent. (Reporting by Syantani Chatterjee; Editing by Gary Hill)
