The company stated that but stated that this week’s layoffs were caused by an “unforeseeable, dramatic business downturn” over the coronavirus and unprecedented commodity price decline.
The 1,000 laid-off workers now join the previously furloughed 3,500 employees, all from the Houston headquarters, as well as workers from two locations in Texas and 240 laid-off workers in Oklahoma.
“The reductions are in addition to layoffs across the company’s global operations. These actions are difficult but necessary as we adjust our business to customers’ decreased activity”, the company said in a statement.
Oil prices have dropped significantly from more than $60 a barrel at the beginning of 2020 to less than $25. In April, U.S. crude prices plunged into negative territory for the 1st time in history, meaning producers had to pay customers to take their oil. Also, producers shut down wells and stopped completing those they have been drilling impacting a large part of Halliburton’s U.S. business.
It is worth noting that Halliburton started the year with 55,000 employees across the world, but the workforce has now decreased shrunk to about 50,000 people, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission shows from April 24.
To remind, Halliburton booked a $1 billion loss in the first quarter of this year compared to a profit in the same period of 2019 due to the combination of low oil demand and resulting oversupply being further exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic.
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