PALO ALTO, Calif. (AP) -- PC manufacturer Hewlett-Packard Co. on Tuesday announced a restructuring plan designed to save $1.9 billion annually and boost business performance. The company said it will lay off 10 percent of its regular full-time staff, or 14,500 employees, over the next six quarters.þþHP intends to simplify its structure by embedding sales and marketing efforts directly into business units, in a move to provide a tighter link with customers. The company said it will cut costs by restructuring support functions, eliminating redundancies and modifying HP's U.S. retirement programs, which will free funds for reinvestment in the business.þþBeginning in fiscal 2007, HP expects approximate ongoing annual savings of $1.9 billion, composed of $1.6 billion in labor costs and $300 million in benefits savings. In fiscal 2006, HP expects savings of between $900 million and $1.05 billion.þþThe company said about half the savings will be used to ''offset market forces'' or be reinvested in the business to strengthen HP's competitiveness. The remainder is anticipated to add to operating profit. þþ
Source: NY Times
