Yesterday I just heard from my friend the official cut-off jobs in Laguna Philippines.
Via Inquirer: MANILA, Philippines — Some 35,000 workers of electronics and automotive parts export companies at the Laguna Technopark have lost their jobs as a direct result of the global financial crisis, Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) secretary general Ernesto Herrera said Wednesday.

Herrera, in a statement, said he got the information from a Japanese investor who conducts business with foreign, mostly Japanese, companies at the special economic zone.

This means a job loss of 43.75 percent at the economic zone since last year, when the 94 companies located there reported a workforce of some 80,000.

Herrera, a former senator who chaired the chamber’s committee on labor, asked the Department of Labor and Employment to look into the report and assist the displaced workers.

Aside from the job cuts by large exporters located in the 387-hectare economic zone, Herrera said other companies have become “extremely aggressive” in cutting work hours to cope with rapidly declining global sales of semiconductor and electronic products.

“In just one large Japanese electronics firm, we were informed that full-time employees were told to report for work for only seven days for the whole of January,” he said.

“If these reports are true, then it would seem that the global economic crisis is hitting us much harder and much quicker than previously anticipated,” Herrera said. “And the government should now intervene more aggressively in providing adequate safety nets to the displaced workers.”

At least 71 of the 94 firms at the Laguna Technoparkproduce electronics or automotive parts and accessories, Herrera said.

Among them are F. Tech Philippines Manufacturing Inc., Fujitsu Die-Tech Corp. of the Philippines, Fujitsu Ten Corp. of the Philippines, Furukawa Electric Autoparts Philippines Inc., Futaba Corp. of the Philippines, Hitachi Computer Products (Asia) Corp., Matsushita (National Panasonic) Communication Industrial Corp., Matsushita (National Panasonic) Electric Philippines Corp., NEC Computer Storage Philippines Inc., Nidec Philippines Corp., TDK Philippines Corp., and Toshiba Information Equipment Philippines Inc.