Intel Corp. [INTC] may cut thousands of employees as it closes older facilities and halts production of older products, the company disclosed Wednesday. The latest development follows last week's announcement by the world's largest semiconductor maker that its income for the fourth quarter of last year had all but disappeared.
The company plans to close two existing assembly test facilities in Penang, Malaysia, and one in Cavite, Philippines, and will halt production at Fab 20, an older 200mm wafer fabrication facility in Hillsboro, Ore. Additionally, wafer production operations will end at the D2 facility in Santa Clara, Calif.
The actions at the four sites, when combined with associated support functions, are expected to affect between 5,000 and 6,000 employees worldwide. However, not all employees will leave Intel; some may be offered positions at other facilities. The changes will take place between now and the end of the year.
Microsoft Corp. [MSFT] is expected to announce layoffs when it reports earnings Thursday after the trading day ends. It would be the first time in the company's 34-year history that workforce reductions would be due to economic conditions.
Other tech companies that have announced layoffs in the current economic downturn include EMC Corp. [EMC], Hewlett-Packard Co. [HPQ], Sun Microsystems Inc. [JAVA] and Yahoo! Inc. [YHOO]. -- Mary Kathleen Flynn
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