w*****2
发帖数: 1458 | 1 After Obama reelection, Murray Energy CEO reads prayer, announces layoffs
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/after-obama-re-e
For the chairman and chief executive of Murray Energy, an Ohio-based coal
company, the reelection of President Obama was no cause for celebration. It
was a time for prayer — and layoffs.
Robert E. Murray read a prayer to a group of company staff members on the
day after the election, lamenting the direction of the country and asking:
“Lord, please forgive me and anyone with me in Murray Energy Corp. for the
decisions that we are now forced to make to preserve the very existence of
any of the enterprises that you have helped us build.”
On Wednesday, Murray also laid off 54 people at American Coal, one of his
subsidiary companies, and 102 at Utah American Energy, blaming a “war on
coal” by the Obama administration.
Murray Energy is the country’s largest privately owned coal mining company,
with about 3,000 employees producing about 30 million tons of bituminous
coal a year, according to its Web site.
The company was the subject of an article in the New Republic that said the
firm forced miners to attend a Romney campaign speech in southeastern Ohio
in August. Murray denied the account. The New Republic also reported that
Murray Energy employees have given more than $1.4 million to Republican
candidates for federal office since 2007.
Murray has been a target of environmentalists. Notably, the company has
spilled coal slurry into a creek on seven occasions.
Murray’s prayer from Wednesday first appeared on the Web site of the
Intelligencer/ Wheeling News-Register. The newspaper said Murray supplied
his text. The Postconfirmed its legitimacy with a company spokesman, Gary M.
Broadbent.
Here is the full text of the prayer:
Dear Lord:
The American people have made their choice. They have decided that America
must change its course, away from the principals of our Founders. And, away
from the idea of individual freedom and individual responsibility. Away from
capitalism, economic responsibility, and personal acceptance.
We are a Country in favor of redistribution, national weakness and reduced
standard of living and lower and lower levels of personal freedom.
My regret, Lord, is that our young people, including those in my own family,
never will know what America was like or might have been. They will pay the
price in their reduced standard of living and, most especially, reduced
freedom.
The takers outvoted the producers. In response to this, I have turned to my
Bible and in II Peter, Chapter 1, verses 4-9 it says, “To faith we are to
add goodness; to goodness, knowledge; to knowledge, self control; to self
control, perseverance; to perseverance, godliness; to godliness, kindness;
to brotherly kindness, love.”
Lord, please forgive me and anyone with me in Murray Energy Corp. for the
decisions that we are now forced to make to preserve the very existence of
any of the enterprises that you have helped us build. We ask for your
guidance in this drastic time with the drastic decisions that will be made
to have any hope of our survival as an American business enterprise.
Amen. | w*****2
发帖数: 1458 | 2 Last night's victory for the President marks the first time since its
inception that Obamacare is no longer a what-if; it is the future of health
care in America.
It also means a near immediate impact on the economy. With 20 or so new or
higher taxes set to be implemented, ranging from a $123 billion surtax on
investment income, through the $20 billion medical device tax, all the way
down to the $600 million executive compensation limit, Obamacare will be a
nearly unbearable tax burden on the economy.
Who will pay? The middle-class workforce, of course.
So with another four years for President Obama to look forward to, and the
obvious inevitability of Obamacare that this entails, let's examine the very
real jobs that will be lost, and the very real lives that will be affected.
Welch Allyn
Welch Allyn, a company that manufactures medical diagnostic equipment in
central New York, announced in September that they would be laying off 275
employees, or roughly 10% of their workforce over the next three years. One
of the major reasons discussed for the layoffs was a proactive response to
the Medical Device Tax mandated by the new healthcare law.
Dana Holding Corp.
As recently as a week ago, a global auto parts manufacturing company in Ohio
known as Dana Holding Corp., warned their employees of potential layoffs,
citing "$24 million over the next six years in additional U.S. health care
expenses". After laying off several white collar staffers, company insiders
have hinted at more to come. The company will have to cover the additional
$24 million cost somehow, which will likely equate to numerous cuts in
their current workforce of 25,500 worldwide.
Stryker
One of the biggest medical device manufacturers in the world, Stryker will
close their facility in Orchard Park, New York, eliminating 96 jobs in
December. Worse, they plan on countering the medical device tax in
Obamacare by slashing 5% of their global workforce - an estimated 1,170
positions.
Boston Scientific
In October of 2009, Boston Scientific CEO Ray Elliott, warned that proposed
taxes in the health care reform bill could "lead to significant job losses"
for his company. Nearly two years later, Elliott announced that the company
would be cutting anywhere between 1,200 and 1,400 jobs, while
simultaneously shifting investments and workers overseas - to China.
Medtronic
In March of 2010, medical device maker Medtronic warned that Obamacare taxes
could result in a reduction of precisely 1,000 jobs. That plan became
reality when the company cut 500 positions over the summer, with another 500
set for the end of 2013.
Others
A short list of other companies facing future layoffs at the hands of
Obamacare:
•Smith & Nephew - 770 layoffs
•Abbott Labs - 700 layoffs
•Covidien - 595 layoffs
•Kinetic Concepts - 427 layoffs
•St. Jude Medical - 300 layoffs
•Hill Rom - 200 layoffs
Beyond the complete elimination of a significant number of American jobs is
another looming problem created by the health care law - a shift from full-
time to part-time workers.
Sean Hackbarth of Free Enterprise explains:
A JP Morgan economist "points out that 8.3 million people are working in
part-time jobs even though they'd prefer full-time work. Unfortunately,
because of President Obama’s health care law, the Patient Protection and
Affordable Care Act (PPACA), workers in the hotel, restaurant, and retail
industries could be pushed into part-time jobs working less than 30 hours
per week."
"Under the health care law, if a company has more than 50 “full time
equivalent” workers, a combination of full and part-time employees, but
doesn’t offer “affordable” coverage that meets the government’s minimum
value standard, the company will have to pay a penalty. This penalty is
determined by the number of full-time employees minus 30 full-time employees
. So to reiterate a very important point: part-time workers are not part of
the penalty formula. The health care law creates a perverse incentive to
hire part-time versus full-time workers."
Tangible examples of Obamacare causing a reduction in full-time workers:
Darden Restaurants
According to the Orlando Sentinel, Darden Restaurants, a casual dining chain
best known for their Red Lobster, Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse
restaurants, is "experimenting with limiting the hours of some of its
workers to avoid health care requirements under the Affordable Care Act when
they take effect in 2014".
JANCOA Janitorial Services
The CEO of JANCOA, Mary Miller, testified to Congress that Obamacare was a "
dream killer", adding that one option she had to consider "is reducing the
majority of my team members to part-time employment in order to reduce the
amount that I will be penalized."
Kroger
The American retailer in Cincinnati, Ohio recently was reported to be
planning a significant slashing of their hourly workers. Doug Ross writes:
Operative Faith (a mid-level manager with the company) reveals that Kroger
will soon join the ranks of Darden Restaurants and slash the hours of its
non-exempt (hourly) workers to avoid millions in Obamacare penalties.
According to the source, Obamacare could result in tens of thousands of
Kroger employees being limited to working 28 hours per week.
Summary
This is by no means, meant to be an exhaustive list. But it is meant to
provide examples of real companies, real jobs, and real names, soon to be
added to the growing list of employment casualties provided by the
inevitable implementation of Obamacare.
Last night, America voted for four more years of President Obama and his
destructive economic and health care policies. By extension, America last
night voted their approval of the aforementioned layoffs and overall work
reduction.
Now we must accept the inevitable. Welcome to mourning in America. | L*******r
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