cost cutting news stories on Newser

Yahoo Lays Off 2K Workers

Kevin Spak — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 09:15:40 CDT

Yahoo is slashing 2,000 jobs, or about 14% of its workforce, the company announced today, in a long-expected cost-cutting move. The cuts will hit every department in the company, and sources tell the Wall Street Journal that yet more cost reduction measures are in the works, as Yahoo continues...

Investigators: BP Didn't Cut Corners After All

Kevin Spak — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 13:11:05 CST

The presidential panel investigating the Deepwater Horizon oil spill has come to a startling conclusion: BP didn’t cut corners on safety to save money. “We have not seen a single instance where a human being made a conscious decision to favor dollars over safety,” Fred Bartlit, the trial lawyer in...

As Sales Slump, Wal-Mart Cuts Prices

Harry Kimball — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 11:42:00 CDT

Wal-Mart will discount around 10,000 items in the face of dipping sales, even as other retailers report increases in business. The move could be a ploy to hang on to middle-class shoppers, who flocked to the big-box behemoth in the depths of the recession but have been upgrading as...

Cash-Strapped School Districts Go to 4-Day Week

Harry Kimball — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 11:04:54 CST

As school districts across the nation find themselves battling massive budget shortfalls, some are turning to the relatively rare but controversial practice of shortening the school week. Four-day weeks usually don’t affect teacher pay or the amount of classroom time for students, as the days are simply lengthened. But if...

Johnson & Johnson to Slash 8,700 Jobs

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:56:08 CST

Johnson & Johnson will cut 7% of its workforce—some 8,400 jobs—and make other other restructuring moves in order to save up to $900 million next year. The New Brunswick, NJ, company says it will also simplify its business structure in order to achieve savings that will add...

10 Dirty Restaurant Tricks

Kevin Spak — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 12:09:00 CDT

Restaurants are known to cut a few corners for the sake of their bottom lines. Slashfood sheds some light on dirty little industry secrets, including: Using cabbage instead of seaweed: An ex-maître d’ at an upscale Chinese joint says the chef assumed his celebrity clientele wouldn’t know the difference. He...

CBO Is Usually Wrong on Health Reform Numbers

Kevin Spak — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 09:53:00 CDT

The Congressional Budget Office is a much-respected institution, and its integrity is beyond question, but it’s got a really lousy record when it comes to estimating the effects of health care reform, writes researcher Jon Gabel in the New York Times . It has drastically underestimated savings from each of the...

Holdouts, Converts Swelter Through Recession Without AC

Matt Cantor — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 10:18:01 CDT

This summer, some Americans are more concerned about their wallets than their comfort—so they’re turning off the air conditioning and putting up with the heat, the New York Times reports. Window air conditioner shipments from manufacturers to distributors dropped 39% the first half of the year versus the first...

Ahead, the Summer of the Furlough

Harry Kimball — Wed, 20 May 2009 14:25:02 CDT

Already-downsized companies seeking to cut costs further will likely increase temporary layoffs this summer, hoping the season will ease the pain of a missed paycheck, Fortune reports. A recent poll found that 44% of US companies are considering or have already implemented furloughs. But some institutions and employees are getting...