CA local job cuts uncertain

The fate of 650 local CA employees is uncertain as the IT management software company prepares to axe 1000 positions globally.

The cuts will affect all sites of CA’s business but will “impact predominantly North America”, according to CA executives. Most cuts will be completed by the end of the month, with the remainder finished by 30 September.

CA chief executive officer, William McCracken, will visit the largest offices over the next month and each major global office by mid-year.

In a letter to employees, he said the cuts would “focus skills and investments on activities that support corporate strategy and have the greatest impact on performance, growth and customer loyalty”.

The decision follows a global realignment of the company’s “portfolio, resources and skills” with its “cloud connected enterprise strategy and program of acquisitions”.

McCracken said in the letter that CA will consolidate “additional facilities” to reduce real estate costs, but added the company is not trying to “cut its way to growth”.

CA will provide professional out-placement services in staff severance packages.

The North American company had not supplied information on which departments will be affected, nor whether more cuts are planned.

The cuts will reduce the company’s headcount by about 7.7 per cent.

CA will incur a pre-tax restructuring charge of about $US50 million in severance and other expenses, while its fiscal 2010 earnings are expected to drop to the low end of a previously released range of $US1.46 to $US1.57 per share.

The cost-cutting moves follow several acquisitions by CA in recent months, including a $US350 million deal to buy IT performance monitoring vendor Nimsoft, which was announced in March.