HR Finance Alert

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Due to the recession, the number of companies implementing cost-cutting measures, including layoffs and hiring and salary freezes, has risen sharply in just two months, according to a new survey by Watson Wyatt.

More than one in five companies (23 percent) plan to make layoffs in the next 12 months. Almost two in five (39 percent) have already made layoffs — a sharp increase from only 19 percent of companies that had done so in October. The number of companies with hiring freezes jumped from 30 percent in October to 47 percent last month. An additional 18 percent are planning a freeze in the next 12 months. Further, the number of companies that have already implemented salary freezes jumped from 4 percent in October to 13 percent currently.