Defense contractors continue to shrink, cut jobs
Following a growth period beginning in 2001 and ending with the recession of 2008, some of the largest defense contractors in the world are cutting thousands of jobs to remain competitive in today's fiscally tight environment.
Defense contractors are shrinking, according to Politico, with the number of employees at the five largest U.S. defense contractors dropping by as much as 14 percent since 2008.
After a growth period kickstarted by the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, one that continued to grow with the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, companies like Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and Boeing have shed thousands of employees, with Lockheed Martin cutting as many as a quarter of its employees since the 2008 recession, Politico said.
In total, the five contractors are estimated by Politico to have nixed a total of 70,000 jobs since the recession, cuts which come along with major divestitures of business units. With sequestration still looming on the table, combined with a divided Congress and a war-weary U.S. population, the cuts do not look to be coming to a close.