AM I NEXT? THE HANDWRITING IS ON THE WALL AT CATHOLIC HEALTH (03/04/22)

MARCH 4, 2022 — 34 IT AND SUPPORT WORKERS LAID OFF

According to Catholic Health, 34 jobs in Information Technology and other corporate service positions were eliminated.

Mark Sullivan, president, and CEO of Catholic Health noted, "Affecting a person’s livelihood through a workforce reduction is an extremely difficult decision to make. Our system, like all healthcare providers in Western New York, is being faced with unprecedented financial challenges from pandemic recovery to accelerating labor costs. The lack of recognition and action by local insurance companies and some elected officials makes these decisions just the beginning of what is to come for other health providers in our region. We hope those in power have the courage to address these challenges immediately and realize this current path will lead to limiting access to care in our region, which would be truly unfortunate."

NOVEMBER 23, 2019 — 200 EMPLOYEES TARGETED IN DEC/JAN LAYOFF

Catholic Health has announced a reduction in force of about 200 employees, half of which will be the result of employee buy-outs and early retirement offers. Layoffs will be phased over the coming two months.

According to Catholic Health's President and CEO Mark Sullivan…

"We are taking a methodical and measured approach to deal with the constant state of change health care providers across the country are experiencing while ensuring we continue to develop and deliver the type of care our patients have come to expect. This means reinventing how we deliver the highest quality care to our community now and in the future.

“Decisions like this are never easy, and we will support our associates affected by these changes. While difficult, however, the proactive steps we are taking today — along with ongoing efforts to transform care, expand needed services, and address inadequate reimbursement with area payers that have not kept pace with the changes in healthcare delivery — will make us stronger long-term.”

SEPTEMBER 22, 2019 — Original post …

The handwriting is clearly on the wall for the employees of Buffalo-based Catholic Health whose mid-year operating deficit is now approaching $16 million dollars in a difficult health care environment. The company has implemented a hiring freeze on all positions with the exception of pre-approved clinical staffing. CEO Mark Sullivan noted that the hiring freeze is one facet of the company’s cost reduction initiatives and describes it as a “course correction.” Further adding, “Besides reductions in the way we are compensated for the care we provide, these losses are further compounded by the fact that annual reimbursement increases we receive from insurers fall significantly below typical healthcare inflation.”

Like most health care providers, Catholic Health, with five hospital campuses, a long-term care site, a home care division and outpatient sites, is experiencing a declining patient census and the ramifications of significantly reduced insurance reimbursements, especially those associated with Medicare and Medicaid.

According to a media spokesperson, "While we continue to see market share growth in various areas, with more patients coming to Catholic Health because of our high quality, we are continually assessing the needs of our organization and our workforce as healthcare continues to evolve."

According to the industry lobbying group American Hospital Association, “Medicare and Medicaid accounted for more than 60 percent of all care provided by hospitals. And, “payments from the two government programs were $76.8 billion less than the cost of care in 2017” while “Hospitals provided another $38.4 billion in uncompensated care in 2017 for the uninsured or patients who didn't pay their portion of a bill.”

One can only imagine the effects of the single-payer system now being labeled by 2020 presidential candidates, falsely, as “Medicare for All.” Each of the proposals, while somewhat different, would eliminate private insurers and allow the government to dictate everything from care levels to staffing.

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?

NO LOVE AT SUNPOWER SOLAR (04/26/24)

APRIL 26, 2024 — REORGANIZATION WITH 1,000+ LAYOFFS

The company announced that it will close its SunPower Residential Installation facilities and SunPower Direct sales unit.

Approximately 1,000+ employees are targeted for layoffs as the company repositions toward third-party sales.

According to Principal Executive Officer Tom Werner…

Team,

I’m writing to share difficult news with you as we implement changes across our organization in the days and weeks to come. To position SunPower for the future, we need to achieve financial viability, which includes simplifying our business structure, transitioning away from areas where we have been unable to sustain profitable operations, and improving financial controls.

As such, we are moving to a low fixed-cost model that we believe we will be able to better flex when the market is up or down. Specifically, we are winding down our SunPower Residential Installation (SPRI) locations and closing SunPower Direct sales. We are also reducing our workforce to better align our business with our new focus. With this shift, we will reduce our workforce by approximately 1,000 people in the coming days and weeks.

While we worked hard to avoid this outcome, the market has been slower to recover than we initially expected. Additionally, we have dedicated resources to improving our financial controls, and will continue to do so. We believe this shift in our strategy is necessary to safeguard the company’s future.

What this means for you

We will inform those of you who are impacted via your personal emails starting at 6:15am PT via an email from AskHR. In some cases, we will host subsequent team meetings to provide more clarity on next steps and what’s ahead.

Some of our impacted team members will depart today, and others will remain on with us for a period of time to help facilitate the transition for our customers. For those talented and devoted colleagues who are departing, we are deeply grateful for your lasting contributions. We are offering a competitive separation package to assist our former colleagues in their transition.

For those staying at SunPower, we recognize this is hard news to receive and will take some time to process. Your ELT members will meet with you today, and we will host an all-employee meeting later this week to provide time for more discussion and questions.

Our path ahead

Through these transitions, we remain committed to delivering high-quality, affordable clean energy systems that meet the unique needs of families across the country. We are dedicated to doing this in a manner that aims to ensure a positive experience for our customers on their solar journey.

After a short transition period, all pipeline operations from pre-installation through system activation will be handled by Blue Raven Solar, full-service installation partners, and our trusted network of SunPower-certified dealers — all who meet our standards of integrity, design, quality, and customer service. As we make this transition over the next month, we are dedicated to handling our customer experience with the highest levels of care and with minimal impact on timelines.

Moving forward, SunPower will focus our efforts on serving our best-in-class Dealer Network and installation partners. We plan to continue to invest in our New Homes business, which continues to grow. We will still manage ongoing customer service needs, including operations and maintenance (O&M), and will continue to honor our Complete Confidence warranty.

We appreciate the ongoing support from our employees, partners and customers as we move SunPower into its next era. Even on our toughest days, I know together we can change the way our world is powered.

Regards,

Tom Werner

Principal Executive Officer

APRIL 2, 2022 — 89 EMPLOYEES IN SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA WILL BE LAID OFF

The company has announced it’s laying off 89 headquarters and research-and-development center workers in San Jose, California as the company continues to focus exclusively on the residential solar market after selling off its commercial and industrial business.

JANUARY 8, 2021 — HILLSBORO, OREGON PLANT TO CLOSE WITH 170 LAYOFFS

The company has announced that it will be closing its former SolarWorld factory in Hillsboro, Oregon which will impact 170 employees. Operations will end in March 2021 with full plant closure in June 2021,

According to SunPower CEO Tom Werner, “We made the difficult but necessary decision to close our plant after careful evaluation and the change in focus of our business over recent months. We recognize how hard this is for all the employees impacted and are dedicated to helping them through this transition.”

The company continues to struggle against state-subsidized foreign solar panels and components.

JANUARY 4, 2020 — COMPANY SPLITS INTO TWO INDEPENDENT COMPANIES WITH 160 LAYOFFS

San Jose, California-based SunPower Corporation. a designer and manufactures silicon photovoltaic cells and solar panels and is owned by French multinational energy company Total S.A., has announced it will be executing a reduction in force that will impact up to 160 jobs.

The decision was driven by a restructuring plan that would see the company separated into “two independent, complementary, strategically-aligned and publicly-traded companies – SunPower and Maxeon Solar Technologies. Each company will focus on distinct offerings built on extensive experience across the solar value chain. SunPower will continue as the leading North American distributed generation, storage, and energy services company and the newly-formed Maxeon Solar will be the leading global technology innovator, manufacturer, and marketer of premium solar panels.

According to Tom Werner, president, and CEO of SunPower, “We believe that the solar industry is entering a period of extended growth where success will be driven by value chain specialization, technology innovation and economies of scale. This new structure and investment will create two focused businesses, each with unique expertise to excel in their part of the value chain."

Maxeon Solar Technologies, which will be based in Singapore and continue to manufacture solar panels offshore in companies located in France, Malaysia, Mexico, and the Philippines. The new company will be partially funded with a $300 million investment from a Chinese manufacturer, Tianjin Zhonghuan Semiconductor.

SunPower will continue to focus on the sales, installation, maintenance, and management of solar energy devices. The company laid off a similar number of employees in 2018 and estimates that restructuring activities will continue through mid-2023 according to a financial filing with the Securities Exchange Commission.

MARCH 8, 2018 — Original Post…

Solar power system designer and manufacturer SunPower has announced that they will be laying off up to 250 employees, reportedly well-paying research and development and marketing positions to compensate for increased costs related to President Trump’s new 30% tariff on imported solar panels and components. This is before President Trump announced the imposition of new tariffs on steel (25%) and aluminum (10%). 

According to SunPower CEO Tom Werner, “with the new tariffs, SunPower will lose $50 million this year, about one-sixth of the company's overall operating costs.” According to Werner, the company fears that next year's losses will be even more staggering, predicting the firm could lose closer to $100 million.” 

"We'll have to cut costs, even more, we just don’t have the money. A cursory review of our balance sheet would see there is not sufficient money which would mean decreased American investment — we’d focus on foreign markets where we don’t have to pay a tariff.” “Werner said the shift to overseas would take jobs with it.”

If SunPower’s request for a tariff waiver is not granted, the result “will likely result in more job cuts and a shift toward more investment in foreign markets.” SunPower is mostly owned by France’s Total, one of the seven ‘super-major,” and the fourth publicly-listed energy company in the world. Total is also dealing with a prolonged downturn in the oil and gas industry.  

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?