Local 3Com staff escape axe

3Com is laying off about 220 employees in the United States and Europe, or roughly 12 percent of its workforce.

However, David Richardson, managing director at 3Com Australia and New Zealand, said the US announcement won't affect anyone in Australia.

"It’s business as usual in Australia," Richardson said.

3Com, a US-based networking company, has notified some 100 employees in the US, 90 employees in the United Kingdom and 30 employees in Ireland that they would be laid off.

The layoffs were paired with a reduction in facility space in Scotland and Ireland. 3Com was also realigning its product teams and cutting back R&D, a statement said.

3Com said the moves would cost around US$15 million. The company expected to make that good by the second quarter of the 2006 fiscal year.

The vendor reported a loss of US$49 million for its fiscal second quarter of the 2005 year, ending 26 November.