ROANOKE TIMES 
                      Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times

DATE: Tuesday, April 9, 1996                 TAG: 9604090065
SECTION: BUSINESS                 PAGE: B-6  EDITION: METRO 
DATELINE: NEW YORK
SOURCE: Associated Press

LAYOFF REPORT REALLY ISN'T ALL THAT GREAT

Corporate layoff announcements surged last month after a drop in February, an outplacement firm said Monday, contrasting with an upbeat government report last week showing a gain of 140,000 jobs.

The layoff surge continued a trend that began in October and pushed first-quarter totals to the highest level in more than two years, Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc. said in its monthly report.

Companies announced 37,486 job cuts in March, up 11 percent from 33,830 in February, the report said. Last month's announced cuts jumped 35 percent from 27,809 in March 1995.

``The number of layoffs is particularly surprising in view of the burgeoning public and political pressure companies are facing to find answers to massive jobs cuts,'' said John Challenger, executive vice president of the Chicago-based firm.

The auto and retail industries announced the most layoffs last month, led by a reported 6,000 cuts by Ford Motor Co. in its product development staff. Retailers Grossman's Inc. and Caldor Corp. said they would cut 1,600 and 1,500 jobs, respectively.

Automakers have been hurt by high inventory and consumers' careful spending, while retailers have continued to suffer from the weak Christmas season, Challenger said.

Last Friday, the Labor Department said payroll jobs increased by 140,000 last month as strength in service industries offset strike-related weakness in manufacturing.

Although the unemployment rate actually inched up to 5.6 percent in March from 5.5 percent, investors were still spooked by the surprisingly large jump in payroll jobs. Bond prices plunged Friday after the report, followed Monday by a hard fall in the stock market.

Challenger reported that last month's layoff announcements boosted this year's first-quarter total to 168,695, up 74 percent from 137,865 during the same period in 1995.

Besides auto and retail, other industries announcing large cuts included aerospace and defense, industrial goods, food and electronics. The Midwest suffered the most announced cuts, with 15,381.

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