Accounting firm Arthur Andersen to lay off 7,000, citing Enron scandal fallout

<br>CHICAGO (AP) _ Staggered by a rapid loss of business following the Enron scandal, Arthur Andersen LLP announced Monday it is laying off about 7,000 employees, or more than a quarter of its U.S. work

Monday, April 8th 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

CHICAGO (AP) _ Staggered by a rapid loss of business following the Enron scandal, Arthur Andersen LLP announced Monday it is laying off about 7,000 employees, or more than a quarter of its U.S. work force.

The layoffs, which Andersen had warned last month were inevitable, come with the firm's reputation in tatters, its overseas network disintegrating and dozens of U.S. companies replacing it as their auditor.

In a statement, Andersen said its audit practice and administrative services will bear the brunt of the cuts, which amount to a little more than a quarter of its U.S. work force of 26,000.

The 89-year-old firm employs about 5,300 people at its headquarters in downtown Chicago, where heavy layoffs are expected. The cuts will be made in the next several months, but no further details were available, the company said.

Andersen said cutbacks were ``one of the many consequences of the events of the last month'' and come despite efforts to avoid them.

``Of all the issues we have confronted recently, none compare to the actions we are now forced to take with our employees,'' said Larry Gorrell, managing partner of Andersen's U.S. operations. ``This decision is even more painful in light of the loyalty, commitment, and the hard work that our employees have demonstrated during this difficult time.''

Andersen has been accused in a federal indictment of obstructing justice in destroying documents related to Enron Corp., its audit client, while the Houston energy trader was under federal investigation. Andersen denies the charge.

Since Enron went bankrupt in December, Andersen has been hit by a barrage of lawsuits by Enron shareholders and creditors. It also has lost dozens of blue chip corporations as clients and nearly a dozen overseas affiliates have bolted to rival firms.

Auditor Trak, a unit of Atlanta-based Strafford Publications Inc., said Monday that Andersen has lost 143 public audit clients this year. The company handled the audits for 2,311 public U.S. companies last year.

Andersen's lawyers have been meeting with Justice Department officials about a possible settlement of the criminal obstruction-of-justice charge, scheduled for trial May 6. Initial talks reportedly have not yielded significant progress.

Andersen also continues to talk to competitors about selling businesses and transferring many of its approximately 1,700 U.S. partners. The firm reached preliminary agreements last week with Deloitte & Touche and KPMG for the transfer of partners and sale of some regional offices.

The consulting business may be next to go. Former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker, head of a special oversight board named by Andersen in February, is working to reform Andersen and keep it alive as an audit-only firm.

But with Enron's creditors eyeing Andersen's dwindling resources, the breakup of Andersen is being challenged. A group of insurers is seeking a court injunction in Houston to block Andersen from selling its assets. A hearing scheduled for Monday was postponed until April 17.

Until the recent defections of overseas partners, Andersen Worldwide _ the legal umbrella for Andersen's businesses including U.S. arm Arthur Andersen LLP _ employed 85,000 people at 84 member firms.