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As the months go on in this dreadful economy there are fewer and fewer places to hide from the pink slip. What started in the real estate and construction industries has spread just about everywhere, including San Diego’s vaunted technology sector.
As of Tuesday, 1,531 tech workers have been laid off countywide since June, according to a tracker of such morbid news compiled by Xconomy, a news site that focuses on the world of high-tech entrepreneurs.
The list includes such tech-sector stalwarts as Amylin Pharmaceuticals (340 employees), SAIC (89 employees) and Cubic Corp. (110 employees). Absent on the list is Qualcomm, the largest local tech employer, and CEO Paul Jacobs said Tuesday that the cell phone chip maker has no plans for layoffs in the short term.
“We are not laying people off, but are holding off on hiring,” Jacobs said at a forum Tuesday evening. “We are looking for a rebound in the second half of (2009). If not, then we will have to take a look at costs.”