Alcatel trims 5% of U.S. work force

(Telephony) French telecom equipment manufacturer Alcatel said yesterday it would cut 5% of its U.S. work force in response to the economic slowdown and decreased customer spending in North America.

All terminated employees were notified yesterday as the company eliminated 1100 of its 130,000 total worldwide jobs. Paris-based Alcatel said 800 of the 1100 cuts were full-time workers.

“It is important, during these tough economic times in the U.S., for us to manage down our cost structure better than ever before,” said Mike Quigley, president of Alcatel Americas in a statement.

The bulk of the reductions were at Alcatel’s Plano, Texas, facility, which slashed 590 of its 7000 employees. Additional cuts were made at the Petaluma, Calif. (93 of 500), Chantilly, Va. (96 of 500), and Raleigh, N.C. (132 of 5000) facilities.

A spokesman said the company had not determined a restructuring charge or how the charge would be accounted for. He also said the cuts were across the board, affecting several segments and various levels.

“The way we determined which jobs was based on critical skills and the business requirements,” the spokesman said.