The prospect of having to make lay-offs for the first time in its history looms larger at DEC as the Maynard minimaker announces that its factory in Phoenix, Arizona is to close at a cost over some 475 jobs. DEC says only that it will attempt to find other positions in the company for some of the employees affected by the closure. All the others will be offered terms comparable to the ones offered to employees to encourage them to leave the company voluntarily. The Phoenix site embraces several operations, including a low-volume printer manufacturing plant, and a distribution centre. All told, DEC wants to end the fiscal year with 5,000 to 6,000 fewer people than it started with; it currently employs some 123,000.
