Motorola to cut 4,000 more jobs

SCHAUMBURG, Ill., May 30 (UPI) -- U.S. cell phone maker Motorola Inc. said Wednesday it would cut an additional 4,000 jobs, or 6 percent of its workforce, as it seeks to return to profitability.

The $600 million in savings the job cuts would create will come on top of $400 million saved when it cut 3,500 jobs in January, the company said.

The first round of cuts is to be completed next month.

The world's No. 2 handset maker said it was on track to reach its projected 2007 cost savings, which also are being made by cutting administrative expenses and discretionary spending.

The Schaumburg, Ill., company, which shrank to 66,000 employees worldwide in 2006 from more than 150,000 in 2000, did not say where the latest cuts would occur. A spokeswoman said they would be achieved through attrition and layoffs.

"Long-term, sustainable profitability is, and always has been, Motorola's top priority," acting Chief Financial Officer Tom Meredith said in a statement.

Motorola posted its first quarterly loss since 2004 this spring.