ExxonMobil expects to shed nearly 2,000 jobs, mainly at its offices in Houston, as the coronavirus pandemic continues to alter the operations of the US oil giant, the company said in a statement on Thursday
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 29th October, 2020) ExxonMobil expects to shed nearly 2,000 jobs, mainly at its offices in Houston, as the coronavirus pandemic continues to alter the operations of the US oil giant, the company said in a statement on Thursday.
"The company anticipates approximately 1,900 employees will be affected through voluntary and involuntary programs," ExxonMobil said in the statement. "The impact of COVID-19 on the demand for ExxonMobil's products has increased the urgency of the ongoing efficiency work."
The COVID-19 pandemic and concerns of oversupply have upended the US and global oil industry since the first quarter, driving crude prices downward.
ExxonMobil's announcement came as the Labor Department reported that some 751,000 Americans filed for jobless benefits last week, as the US job market continued to struggle seven months into the COVID-19 outbreak.
More than 21 million US jobs were lost between March and April, at the height of lockdowns forced by the pandemic. A rebound of 2.5 million jobs was logged in May and 4.8 million in June, before the recovery began slowing. For all of September, there were just 661,000 jobs added.
The US economy grew by a record 33.1 percent in the third quarter after a combined drop of nearly 37 percent in the six months, the Commerce Department said Thursday. In 2019, the economy grew by 4.1 percent.
