Telecom Firms Make Another Round of Job Cuts.

Byline: Vikas Bajaj

Mar. 28--Telecommunications giants Nortel Networks Corp., Ericsson Inc. and Nokia Oyj announced further job cuts Tuesday, saying a sluggish economy was forcing them to trim costs and retool.

The companies, which have their U.S. headquarters in the Dallas area, have already cut thousands of jobs so far this year and some analysts say this may not be the last of the carnage.

Nortel said first-quarter losses would be greater than previously thought and it would dismiss 5,000 more workers by the middle of the year, bringing its total cuts to 15,000. The Canadian firm with U.S. headquarters in Richardson said it would lose 10 to 12 cents per share in the quarter, compared to the loss of 4 cents a share it predicted in February.

Ericsson will cut 3,300 manufacturing jobs in Sweden and the United Kingdom, freeze hiring across the company and dismiss a large number of consultants, transferring their work to staffers. The Swedish firm with U.S. headquarters in Plano will provide more details on April 20.

"There has been a slowdown in the whole economy, particularly in the tech industry," said Ericsson spokeswoman Kathy Egan.

Meanwhile, Nokia said it would dismiss 300 to 400 workers in its broadband business, which makes equipment for high-speed Internet access over telephone wires. The Finnish company said the cuts will not affect Nokia's U.S. headquarters in Irving.