San Diego’s Cymer said yesterday it will lay off 100 workers, cut salaries for remaining employees and eliminate the company’s contribution to retirement accounts in the wake of steep declines in orders for semiconductor equipment.
The Draconian cuts come as Cymer, which makes complex lasers used in chip production, said sales for the current quarter could fall as much as 35 percent.
At a meeting with employees, the company said it is temporarily cutting base pay 10 percent, suspending its maximum $5,000 annual match to worker 401(k) retirement accounts and ending merit pay raises and bonuses.
Paul Bowman, interim chief financial officer, said job cuts occurred worldwide, with about 70 workers losing their positions at Cymer’s San Diego headquarters. The company will have about 900 workers after the layoffs.
Cymer said it hopes to restore worker wages and retirement fund contributions when economic conditions improve.
The company ended the third quarter with $277 million in cash. It plans to pay off $141 million in debt next month. After that, it will have $136 million in cash and be debt-free.
Cymer said the moves were necessary because demand has fallen for its machines, which use lasers as part of the complex process of placing intricate circuit patterns on chips.
The company estimates its revenue during the first quarter could decline 30 percent to 35 percent from its fourth-quarter revenue.
