Navistar To Cut 1,100 Jobs

CHICAGO (AP) â€” Anticipating a sharp decline in demand for new trucks, Navistar International Corp. plans to eliminate 1,100 salaried and contract jobs in the coming weeks. <br><br>The cuts will represent

Tuesday, August 15th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

CHICAGO (AP) â€” Anticipating a sharp decline in demand for new trucks, Navistar International Corp. plans to eliminate 1,100 salaried and contract jobs in the coming weeks.

The cuts will represent about 15 percent of the Chicago-based company's white-collar work force, the company said Tuesday.

Navistar did not say where or when the jobs will be cut. It said details will be announced later this month.

The announcement came a day after DaimlerChrysler's Freightliner Corp. disclosed it will cut 3,745 jobs at its U.S. and Canadian plants in anticipation of slower truck sales. Freightliner currently employs 20,141 people across North America.

John R. Horne, Navistar chairman, president and chief executive officer, said the industry has seen a continuing decline in new truck orders. He said Navistar experienced a drop in third-quarter truck and bus shipments, as well as a drop in orders, caused by an oversupply of late-model used trucks, escalating diesel fuel prices and higher interest rates.

``To continue as a strong company, we must continue to deliver strong financial results regardless of market conditions,'' Horne said.

Navistar, which makes large trucks, school buses and diesel engines, announced the staff reductions in its earnings report released Tuesday morning. The company reported earnings for the third quarter ended July 31 totaled $96 million, or $1.60 per share, compared with $255 million, or $3.86 a share, a year earlier.

Revenue for the quarter rose to $1.92 billion from $1.87 billion a year ago.

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On the Net: Navistar site: http://www.navistar.com