HP to axe 2,500 jobs

Hewlett-Packard has begun the job-cutting programme chairman Lew Platt recently suggested might be used to help reduce the company's overall costs (see HP admits job cuts on the cards). The cuts will be implemented through a voluntary redundancies and will target 2,500 people, two per cent of HP's workforce. It has already imposed a five per cent pay cut on 2400 managers throughout August, September and October. The company will take a $150 million charge against its Q4 results to cover the severance payments and "other costs". In August HP predicted it would have to spend $100 million, but earlier this month it admitted the figure would be closer to $150 million, thanks to few signs of recovery in the Asian market. ® Click for more stories