Corporate Downsizing

My company, continuing the process that has existed for the past several years, announced another 20% downsizing, to happen over the next three years. I guess I expect this now, and it comes as no surprise. Yet it still brings anxiety and forces me to reconsider certain spending decisions. Like buying a new car, or hanging on to the old one for a few more years — I guess now I’ll hang on to my old one a little longer.

One is tempted to place the blame somewhere for this. One issue is definitely changing technology. Throughout the history of industry, when a technology gets replaced by a newer, improved technology, some companies suffer while other companies prosper. The rise and decline of railroads is one example. And so my company suffers from the fact that new technology is very competitive. It’s not clear that my company can adapt to the new technology quickly enough, and even if it can, there will still be fewer jobs.

My company also suffers from the high tax rates here in the United States and in New York State. Some jobs will be shipped to foreign countries, where there is almost no tax on industry. So, while this doesn’t result in fewer jobs, it does result in fewer jobs in the United States. The cost of labor in foreign countries also figures into this.

The cycle of anxiety begins again. The cycle of uncertainty begins again. I hate it.