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差不多占总员工的3.5个百分点。3 Y0 N% ~' R7 g( E
2 K, X4 s6 W: S+ Y4 I! t% iFinning Canada has laid off 160 salaried staff in Alberta and B.C. as sales of Caterpillar equipment slows in the economic downturn.) A2 m1 Y- S0 Q, F3 p0 u8 o6 s
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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.2 R Z9 U2 x$ i7 S @: c
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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.' U5 g1 {- r6 @6 p! v, [
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It brings Finning Canada's workforce down to about 4,300.7 }! E. n$ j8 Z& p9 Y" m9 W2 t9 {
* j& `, s+ g& V: C, vNo hourly workers - who service and rebuild construction and mining equipment - are affected.
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In fact, the company is still hiring mechanics and technicians, Hunt said.) V9 f0 U& E( a0 t. q) S8 E
& A8 p3 W T6 ~0 q' C3 w" o2 v1 d"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."' h; z# k: ~" R3 W9 B3 l9 F6 A
; h% R& j r+ D5 w& VThe recent delays and cancellations of oilsands projects - a major income source for Finning - was not a factor in the layoffs, Hunt said.1 U0 e9 N# V5 w
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"We're still very busy in the oilsands."; c' _( [6 q% [- R0 }
! ^8 _* l4 v% M& BHunt said Finning has been immune to recent downturns, but is now being affected by slowing sales in some areas.0 H" B$ [: Q6 z5 U2 @
8 S: `' O+ z8 rThey will continue to monitor the situation, but "we can't say it's the end" of layoffs, he added.& n. O' X0 x- x" Z, D; t: e
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The employees, most of whom got the bad news Wednesday, will get severance packages and outplacement help, he said.
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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.& o, b$ @( g0 R" m- {
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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.
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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.
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Its 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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