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差不多占总员工的3.5个百分点。
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Finning Canada has laid off 160 salaried staff in Alberta and B.C. as sales of Caterpillar equipment slows in the economic downturn.$ \, ~* E Q O# s2 y
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Every office and every staff level, from support staff to management, in both provinces were affected, human resources vice-president Miles Hunt said Thursday.0 J8 ]/ P0 g2 n k0 z1 M
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Twenty-nine people lost their jobs in Edmonton, where Finning Canada has its head office.
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"It's the toughest decision we have to make in our business life, and it's been a hard few days for us," Hunt said.
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It brings Finning Canada's workforce down to about 4,300.; Z! l- M7 e R" Q" Y
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No hourly workers - who service and rebuild construction and mining equipment - are affected.
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- H+ E7 p$ z& xIn fact, the company is still hiring mechanics and technicians, Hunt said.
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"That's the paradoxical thing. Even though things are changing, Fort McMurray (Alta.) is still growing, and we need more people up there," he said.
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"It's our customers who are going to get us through this, and that's the last place we want to cut."
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# E' _2 A8 C, ~The recent delays and cancellations of oilsands projects - a major income source for Finning - was not a factor in the layoffs, Hunt said.
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( ]/ B) p* w' u: `. Q6 N"We're still very busy in the oilsands."
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5 Q% @( B2 |- ?( ~Hunt said Finning has been immune to recent downturns, but is now being affected by slowing sales in some areas.
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+ H1 O5 Y+ j n( d+ p+ kThey will continue to monitor the situation, but "we can't say it's the end" of layoffs, he added.6 b8 z8 Y: M# g" ?: a
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The employees, most of whom got the bad news Wednesday, will get severance packages and outplacement help, he said.% y+ P5 y4 Z. }7 ~9 ~/ g8 @+ W
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Mike Waites, CEO of Vancouver-based parent company Finning International Inc., recently lowered the 2008 earnings guidance due to a slowdown in some of its businesses in Western Canada and the United Kingdom.: h1 W$ F- q0 F1 k# B; \$ Q$ H9 Q
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Demand for new equipment will likely soften and some purchases may be deferred, but that will result in an increase in its parts and service business - Finning's most profitable business - he said.$ u9 n C" n" x$ Z8 w1 ]8 T+ U B9 J
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Finning reported third-quarter net income of $64.8 million compared to $63.6 million for the same quarter last year. Revenues were a record $1.46 billion, compared to $1.33 billion a year before.! _, m+ f: }6 [9 H4 y! b) Q/ D% Q
. L' L$ @! H* @2 C( UIts order backlog has also grown to a new record of $2 billion, dominated by mining equipment, "and provides good revenue visibility for 2009 and into 2010," Waites said. |
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