EuphoricOctopus
Jan 23, 2007, 3:03 AM
Pfizer cuts will cost Michigan 2,410 jobs
January 22, 2007
By ALEJANDRO BODIPO-MEMBA and JOHN GALLAGHER
FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITERS
Pfizer Inc. will cut 2,410 jobs in Michigan and close its massive Ann Arbor research facilities and a site in downtown Kalamazoo in another blow to the battered Michigan economy.
Beyond the human suffering involved in job cuts, Pfizer’s move marks a setback for Michigan’s efforts to develop its health sciences industry as a major generator of jobs for the future.
“Michigan adds jobs in tear drops, like Google, and loses them in roaring tsunamis,” said Tom Watkins, former state school superintendent of Michigan and CEO of TDW and Associates.
“The aftershocks of this announcement will roll over numerous Michigan families,” he said. “Let’s remember these are more than just job loss statistics. These people are the heads of households, someone’s spouse, or father or mother that are losing their jobs and their hope.”
If there was a bright spot in the announcement, Dr. David Canter, Pfizer’s senior vice president in charge of Michigan operations, said Pfizer would still employ about 4,000 people in the Kalamazoo area once the layoffs are complete by the end of 2008.
In Portage, outside Kalamazoo, Pfizer operates its largest and most diverse production facility in the world, making a range of medicines and ointments.
Announcing the cuts today, Pfizer said they were part of a world-wide streamlining and restructuring that would see the elimination of 10,000 jobs, about 10% of its worldwide workforce, and result in $1.5 billion to $2 billion in cost cutting.
At Pfizer’s massive Ann Arbor research facility, the news came as a blow. Once the sight of a Parke-Davis facility acquired by Pfizer, the research and development complex occupies 177 acres and 2 million square feet of industrial, laboratory, and office space.
Gov. Jennifer Granholm met with the media in Ann Arbor this afternoon, saying she wants to do everything she can to keep former Pfizer employees in the state.
“We’re going to have a whole ‘Stick Around Ann Arbor’ campaign for these employees, because we want them to stay here,” Granholm said.
The research now done in Ann Arbor, and a small Esperion Group facility in Plymouth, will transfer to other Pfizer sites in Groton, Conn.; St. Louis, Mo.; LaJolla, Calif.; and Sandwich in the United Kingdom. Pfizer said it expects that “a substantial number” of the workers in Ann Arbor will transfer.
Workers in Ann Arbor who do not transfer will be offered career and retirement counseling and possibly severance and health care based on years of service.
Besides the manufacturing plant in Portage, the global headquarters for Pfizer’s Veterinary Medicine research arm also will remain in Kalamazoo County, including a 2,000-acre farm in Richland Township and laboratories in downtown Kalamazoo. Slentrol, Pfizer’s new medicine for obese dogs, was developed by Pfizer scientists there and will be manufactured in Portage.
As Pfizer’s top executive in Michigan, Canter has been a leading figure in the state’s drive to develop its life-sciences industry to replace some of the jobs lost to automotive downsizing. He agreed Monday that the layoffs were a setback. But he said some smaller biotech companies in the state may be able to hire some of the laid-off Pfizer scientists and grow faster than they would have otherwise.
“This is a short-term setback and it will take a while to recover,” he said. “But I don’t think our thinking is wrong. Our thinking is absolutely right. Developing the entrepreneurial spirit with these companies is the right way to go. Yes, this is a short-term hit. It hurts. But I honestly believe we have to keep going.”
Unlike some previous layoffs in other industries, Canter said the Pfizer cuts could not be blamed on Michigan’s tax climate, union demands, unfavorable weather, or any other oft-cited problem. He said Pfizer, through a series of mergers and acquisitions, simply had too many research facilities around the world. The Michigan cuts were part of a worldwide streamlining.
Mary Sue Coleman, president of the University of Michigan, said she was stunned by Pfizer's announcement.
"This is very difficult news for our region,'' she said in a statement. "Pfizer and its predecessors have been a positive force in our community for decades, and we have all benefited from these relationships.
"I have reached out to the Governor and city leadership to offer my support as we look ahead. Southeast Michigan has many resources, including Ann Arbor Spark, to plan for and encourage the development of new business opportunities as well as attracting existing businesses that might be interested in the talent pool and facilities that will become available. We want to do all we can in partnership with the State and region to encourage such activity."
Most Pfizer workers in Ann Arbor declined to comment this afternoon, saying the company had told them not to talk to the media. But Scott Vasbinder, a contract maintenance worker, said the mood inside the company was somber.
“It’s shocking, but I always wanted to be a cop,’’ said another worker Jeremy Castorena, 28, of Ann Arbor. He left work after learning the news of the cuts. "I'm going to go see my wife and figure this out,'' he said.
In a meeting with financial analysts earlier today, Pfizer Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey B. Kindler and several other members of Pfizer's leadership team, including vice chairman David Shedlarz, Ian Read, the head of Worldwide Pharmaceutical Operations, and Dr. John LaMattina, the head of Pfizer Global Research and Development, discussed the challenges and opportunities facing the company and summarized Pfizer's most immediate priorities.
“We are facing significant challenges, however, in a profoundly changing business environment. I believe we must fundamentally change the way we run our company to meet these challenges and to take advantage of the diverse and attractive opportunities that we see in the marketplace," Kindler said in a statement.
Pfizer said cost cuts will lead to the loss of about 10,000 jobs total, or about 10% of the company's global workforce.
The news of closings came on the heels of Pfizer's announcement this morning that its fourth-quarter profits had dropped 43%. The company recently sold its consumer business for $16.6 billion to Johnson & Johnson to offset the lower profits from operations.
Free Press business writer JEWEL GOPWANI contributed to this report. Reports from the Associated Press were also included in this report.
Seems like we are just getting blows left and right. Although, Pfzier isn't doing too well, and their last breakthrough drug was Viagra. Pfzier has been buying out companies just to stay a float. I want Parke-Davis and Upjohn back.
January 22, 2007
By ALEJANDRO BODIPO-MEMBA and JOHN GALLAGHER
FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITERS
Pfizer Inc. will cut 2,410 jobs in Michigan and close its massive Ann Arbor research facilities and a site in downtown Kalamazoo in another blow to the battered Michigan economy.
Beyond the human suffering involved in job cuts, Pfizer’s move marks a setback for Michigan’s efforts to develop its health sciences industry as a major generator of jobs for the future.
“Michigan adds jobs in tear drops, like Google, and loses them in roaring tsunamis,” said Tom Watkins, former state school superintendent of Michigan and CEO of TDW and Associates.
“The aftershocks of this announcement will roll over numerous Michigan families,” he said. “Let’s remember these are more than just job loss statistics. These people are the heads of households, someone’s spouse, or father or mother that are losing their jobs and their hope.”
If there was a bright spot in the announcement, Dr. David Canter, Pfizer’s senior vice president in charge of Michigan operations, said Pfizer would still employ about 4,000 people in the Kalamazoo area once the layoffs are complete by the end of 2008.
In Portage, outside Kalamazoo, Pfizer operates its largest and most diverse production facility in the world, making a range of medicines and ointments.
Announcing the cuts today, Pfizer said they were part of a world-wide streamlining and restructuring that would see the elimination of 10,000 jobs, about 10% of its worldwide workforce, and result in $1.5 billion to $2 billion in cost cutting.
At Pfizer’s massive Ann Arbor research facility, the news came as a blow. Once the sight of a Parke-Davis facility acquired by Pfizer, the research and development complex occupies 177 acres and 2 million square feet of industrial, laboratory, and office space.
Gov. Jennifer Granholm met with the media in Ann Arbor this afternoon, saying she wants to do everything she can to keep former Pfizer employees in the state.
“We’re going to have a whole ‘Stick Around Ann Arbor’ campaign for these employees, because we want them to stay here,” Granholm said.
The research now done in Ann Arbor, and a small Esperion Group facility in Plymouth, will transfer to other Pfizer sites in Groton, Conn.; St. Louis, Mo.; LaJolla, Calif.; and Sandwich in the United Kingdom. Pfizer said it expects that “a substantial number” of the workers in Ann Arbor will transfer.
Workers in Ann Arbor who do not transfer will be offered career and retirement counseling and possibly severance and health care based on years of service.
Besides the manufacturing plant in Portage, the global headquarters for Pfizer’s Veterinary Medicine research arm also will remain in Kalamazoo County, including a 2,000-acre farm in Richland Township and laboratories in downtown Kalamazoo. Slentrol, Pfizer’s new medicine for obese dogs, was developed by Pfizer scientists there and will be manufactured in Portage.
As Pfizer’s top executive in Michigan, Canter has been a leading figure in the state’s drive to develop its life-sciences industry to replace some of the jobs lost to automotive downsizing. He agreed Monday that the layoffs were a setback. But he said some smaller biotech companies in the state may be able to hire some of the laid-off Pfizer scientists and grow faster than they would have otherwise.
“This is a short-term setback and it will take a while to recover,” he said. “But I don’t think our thinking is wrong. Our thinking is absolutely right. Developing the entrepreneurial spirit with these companies is the right way to go. Yes, this is a short-term hit. It hurts. But I honestly believe we have to keep going.”
Unlike some previous layoffs in other industries, Canter said the Pfizer cuts could not be blamed on Michigan’s tax climate, union demands, unfavorable weather, or any other oft-cited problem. He said Pfizer, through a series of mergers and acquisitions, simply had too many research facilities around the world. The Michigan cuts were part of a worldwide streamlining.
Mary Sue Coleman, president of the University of Michigan, said she was stunned by Pfizer's announcement.
"This is very difficult news for our region,'' she said in a statement. "Pfizer and its predecessors have been a positive force in our community for decades, and we have all benefited from these relationships.
"I have reached out to the Governor and city leadership to offer my support as we look ahead. Southeast Michigan has many resources, including Ann Arbor Spark, to plan for and encourage the development of new business opportunities as well as attracting existing businesses that might be interested in the talent pool and facilities that will become available. We want to do all we can in partnership with the State and region to encourage such activity."
Most Pfizer workers in Ann Arbor declined to comment this afternoon, saying the company had told them not to talk to the media. But Scott Vasbinder, a contract maintenance worker, said the mood inside the company was somber.
“It’s shocking, but I always wanted to be a cop,’’ said another worker Jeremy Castorena, 28, of Ann Arbor. He left work after learning the news of the cuts. "I'm going to go see my wife and figure this out,'' he said.
In a meeting with financial analysts earlier today, Pfizer Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey B. Kindler and several other members of Pfizer's leadership team, including vice chairman David Shedlarz, Ian Read, the head of Worldwide Pharmaceutical Operations, and Dr. John LaMattina, the head of Pfizer Global Research and Development, discussed the challenges and opportunities facing the company and summarized Pfizer's most immediate priorities.
“We are facing significant challenges, however, in a profoundly changing business environment. I believe we must fundamentally change the way we run our company to meet these challenges and to take advantage of the diverse and attractive opportunities that we see in the marketplace," Kindler said in a statement.
Pfizer said cost cuts will lead to the loss of about 10,000 jobs total, or about 10% of the company's global workforce.
The news of closings came on the heels of Pfizer's announcement this morning that its fourth-quarter profits had dropped 43%. The company recently sold its consumer business for $16.6 billion to Johnson & Johnson to offset the lower profits from operations.
Free Press business writer JEWEL GOPWANI contributed to this report. Reports from the Associated Press were also included in this report.
Seems like we are just getting blows left and right. Although, Pfzier isn't doing too well, and their last breakthrough drug was Viagra. Pfzier has been buying out companies just to stay a float. I want Parke-Davis and Upjohn back.