We're expecting the March jobs report Friday, and expectations are that nonfarm payroll employment will increase by 193,000.
The unemployment rate is expected to hold steady at 7.7 percent.
While the labor market has been trudging along slowly, mass layoffs in the past year have weighed on employment.
We drew on Bloomberg data to highlight the 16 biggest layoff announcements since April of last year.
16. First Solar: 2,000
Percent of Employees Cut:
28.57 percent
Number of Employees After Cuts:
7,000
First Solar announced that it would layoff almost a third of its workforce early last year and shut down its factory in Germany. This comes as the European market for green energy has deteriorated.
Source: Business Insider, Bloomberg
15: JC Penney: 2,200
Percent of Employees Cut:
1.90 percent
Number of Employees After Cuts:
116,000
JC Penney employees were told earlier this year that they have to get ready to "work harder with less" in 2013. "Service Leaders, administrative assistants, and office/cash room associates" were being cut, though some of these were being reabsorbed and offered sales positions.
CEO Ron Johnson has been trying to transform the retailer. 19,000 employees have been laid off since he took over.
Source: Business Insider, Bloomberg
14. Colgate-Palmolive Co: 2,316
Percent of Employees Cut:
6.00 percent
Number of Employees After Cuts:
38,600
Colgate-Palmolive, which makes a variety of consumer products like shampoo and toothpaste, announced that it would be laying off 2,316 employees by 2016. The layoffs are expected to save the company more than $365 million annually.
Source: The Motley Fool, Bloomberg
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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