Tech sector likely to lose 180,000 jobs

WASHINGTON, USA: The technology sector is on pace to lose 180,000 jobs this year, the most since 2003, amid a global economic downturn, according to a report.

Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc, a Chicago-based global consulting firm which tracks job-cut announcements, said telecommunications, electronics and computer industry companies had cut 140,422 jobs through October 31.

It said 69,654 tech-sector jobs had been cut in the third quarter of the year alone. That did not include major layoffs announced since October 31 such as the 5,000 to 6,000 job cuts at Sun Microsystems.

"At the current pace, the year-end total could reach 180,000, which would be the largest annual total since 2003, when technology firms announced 228,325 job cuts," it said.

A total of 107,295 tech-sector jobs were cut in 2007.