Bankrupt Enron axes thousands

Associated Press

HOUSTON — Employees carrying boxes, plants, Enron Corp. mugs and other personal items filed out of the company’s headquarters in a steady stream Monday, after the bankrupt energy trader told 4,000 workers they were out of a job.

The job cuts, which represent nearly 20 percent of Enron’s work force, come a day after the former energy trading giant and 13 subsidiaries filed for bankruptcy protection in one of the largest corporate bankruptcies in U.S. history.

Most of the layoffs were at Enron’s Houston headquarters. The remaining 3,500 or so employees in the 50-story mirrored glass tower were sent home. Spokeswoman Karen Denne said those employees would return to work today.

The cuts amounted to nearly 3 percent of downtown Houston’s work force of about 150,000.

Employees were informed during four large meetings Monday morning.

Their reaction ranged from anger and frustration directed at Enron’s management to fear and uncertainty about how they would be able to support their families while looking for new jobs in a soft economy.

"It’s three weeks before Christmas, and I have nothing," said Joann Matson, a human resources coordinator who was let go. "I thought we deserved to be treated better. It’s devastating."

The steady and slow stream of vehicles that motored on a narrow side street in front of one of the building’s entrances, where somber employees waited for rides home, resembled a funeral procession.

As Houston police officers — on foot, horseback and in patrol cars — observed and directed traffic, employees hauled their belongings into backseats and car trunks and drove away into uncertain futures.

"If I have to work three jobs, I’m going to do that to get back on my feet," said Tammie Huthmacher, who had been with Enron for 1 1/2 years.

Huthmacher, 27, said that although her husband works, the loss of her job will make it very difficult for her family to pay its bills and they might have to file for bankruptcy themselves.

"I blame Enron for this. The employees did a good job. This is in no way a reflection of us," said Huthmacher, who is six months pregnant and is unsure whether she still has health insurance.

An information sheet distributed to laid-off employees said each would receive a $4,500 severance package. A Manhattan bankruptcy court judge approved the severance payments late Monday.

But, Michelle Robichaux, 39, who worked for Enron’s retail electrical sales department and had been with the company 10 years, said she’s not counting on the money.

"I’m not confident we’ll see that money," she said.

Like many other employees, Robichaux and Matson also lost a bundle because of Enron’s stock freefall, which in one year has plunged from the mid-$80s to around the cost of a first-class postage stamp.

Robichaux lost a little under $1 million because of the Enron stock plunge. She had Enron stock options, bought stock through an employee purchasing program, and she was one of the many company employees whose retirement plans were was greatly devalued because they were invested heavily in Enron stock. Matson’s $70,000 in stock options also evaporated.

Copyright ©2001 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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