Motorola lays off 77 workers and stops mobile development

Motorola is in a bad shape. One of the leading mobile phone producers had been badly hit by the economic recession. In order to cut cost, the company has decided to lay off its 77 employees at its Plantation facility. Earlier on January 15, 2009, the company announced to lay off 4000 workers in North America. The new declaration will become affective from March 27, 2009.

South Florida Business Journal reports:

In its notice to the state, Motorola said those employees affected by the layoffs will not have the right to bump or displace other employees. However, they can apply for open positions and will be provided with severance.

A company spokesperson did not return calls for comment.

In terms of business, 2008 was a bad year for Motorola. For the last couple of years, the company enjoyed the top third spot in terms of mobile phone sales. In 2008, it slipped down to 4^th position with sales of 99.9 million mobile phones. Due to job loss and financial crisis, consumers have decreased buying new phones. Moreover, the company failed to bring in good quality products which caused its downfall last year.