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April 18, 2008
HOPEWELL TOWNSHIP - Mercer County's economy has sus tained its second body blow in five months.
Financial services giant Merrill Lynch, Mercer County's largest employer with approximately 6,000 personnel here, announced yesterday it will reduce its global work force of 61,000 by approximately 4,000 jobs.
The cuts are a result of more than $12 billion in Merrill losses over the last six months tied to the subprime mortgage and credit market problems. In the quarter that just ended the company lost $2 billion, Merrill reported yesterday.
The company would not specify exactly how many people locally could lose their jobs. That has created a tense atmosphere in the Hopewell facility where speculation among employees is as many as 500 people could be laid off in central New Jersey, an employee told The Times.
In December, pharmaceuticals titan Bristol-Myers Squibb, the county's No. 3 employer with about 3,800 employees, also announced heavy layoffs worldwide. Similarly, Bristol-Myers would not specify then exactly how many people locally would be let go.
But as the cutbacks by two of the nation's Fortune 500 stalwarts play out over this year, it is ex pected that they will affect Mercer County deeply.
"Obviously, there is going to be a lot of pain in this recession," said Mercer County Executive Brian M. Hughes. "You can be ready with all of the tools that you have but you can't make up for the human suf fering that is going to go on."
That suffering was evident yesterday among employees. "The atmosphere here is definitely intense and somber," said a Merrill employee. "We're all just waiting it out to see what happens. I don't think there's anyone who isn't worried about losing their job."
Hughes said the county is ready to offer assistance to former Merrill employees at its One-Stop center, which offers resources to help re train people for other work. In ad dition, Hughes said he has been in contact with the state Department of Labor and Work Force Development, which is ready to provide information to affected Merrill employees about their rights and benefits as well.
He added, "I think that like most counties throughout the country, we are going to see the ups and downs of financial realignment within corporate America based on some bad decisions made by corporations and made by people at every point in the economic structure. Basically, I think America was living way beyond its means in a lot of ways and we are seeing that downturn right now, and it's going to be painful."
In Hopewell Township, where Merrill has 1.25 million square feet of office space, Mayor Vanessa Sandom was equally downbeat. "Any time we hear of a downturn in the economy ... we are saddened by that, and concerned for the employees who work in our town and who live in our town, and their families," she said.
Merrill spokeswoman Selena Morris said the facility on Scotch Road in Hopewell Township pri marily employs people in support of Merrill's global wealth management business. Of the companywide work force reductions of 4,000 that were announced yesterday, 1,100 had already occurred in the first quarter, mainly through the decision in March to eliminate their First Franklin subprime mort gage home lending business, she explained.
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