The Corporations Who Lied To Get A Tax Cut

Cartoon image is by Mike Konopacki at huckkonopackicartoons.com.

When the Republicans passed their tax cuts last year, they made a lot of promises -- workers would get a 4,000 raise on average and massive numbers of new jobs would be created. Of course, neither of those things happened.

One of the groups lobbying Congress for the massive tax cuts was the Reforming America's Taxes Equitably Coalition (RATE). This was a group of corporations, and equitable for them meant a huge tax cut for corporations. To get that cut, they joined Republicans in promising the cuts would produce a massive number of new jobs. They lied.

Instead of giving raises or creating jobs, they used most of their tax cut to buy their own stock (which raised the price of that stock for owners and managers. Then many of them did just the opposite of what they had promised -- they started laying off workers!

From Think Progress, here are some of the corporate members of RATE who laid off workers:

AT&T

The Guardian reported in August that while AT&T received a windfall of tens of billions from the tax bill, its outsourcing and facility closures continued apace. According to the Communication Workers of America union, the company had already laid off about 7,000 workers since the company celebrated the bill’s passage. AT&T disputed this number at the time and told ThinkProgress that it hired nearly 16,000 workers in the first 10 months of 2018.

Brown-Forman

A June report in the Louisville Courier Journal noted that the makers of Jack Daniel’s and other alcoholic beverages had recently “extended early retirement offers to about 150 salaried employees, looking to shed dozens of workers earning solid six-figure salaries.” 

Capital One

At least two major job cuts were reported in 2018 at Capital One: one impacting 180 employees in Delaware and another affecting 286 employees in Texas. 

Cox Enterprises

Cox’s automotive division decided to make several hundred layoffs, according to an October report in Automotive News. A spokesperson told the publication “These changes, while difficult, are needed for Cox Automotive to deliver on the most relevant products and services for our clients and the industry.”

Ford

Amid Donald Trump’s tariffs — which cost Ford a reported $1 billion — the company announced in October a major restructuring that would include layoffs. They said these cuts were “to support the company’s strategic objectives, create a more dynamic and empowering work environment, and become more fit as a business.” This came after thousands of hourly assembly plant workers in Michigan were temporarily laid off by the company.

General Dynamics

In February, General Dynamics reportedly filed documentation warning it would soon lay off 73 employees in Virginia. The mammoth defense contractor’s San Diego-based General Dynamics-NASSCO subsidiary announced another 300 to 350 layoffs in August.

Intel

In June, Intel announced it had “decided to reduce its workforce by laying off approximately 65 employees at its facilities” in the Silicon Valley. This came on the heels of the company’s decision to shutter its smart glasses division, which it predicted would also mean some layoffs for employees on that 200-person team.

Kimberly-Clark

The New York Times reported in January that Kimberly-Clark, makers of Kleenex and Huggies, would cut 5,000 to 5,500 jobs — about 13 percent of its work force. According to that report, “To help pay for the cuts and other restructuring moves, Kimberly-Clark said, it will use savings from the recently enacted corporate tax cut.” 

Lockheed Martin

The defense contractor announced at the end of July that it was laying off all of the employees in its 500-person Sikorsky-Lockheed Martin facility in Palm Beach, Florida.

Macy’s

Macy’s announced multiple store closures in 2018 as part of its previously announced downsizing. Additionally, it laid off several members of its human resources team. 

Northrop Grumman

The defense contractor Northrop Grumman announced 59 layoffs at Fort Hood in Texas in January 2018. The same month, it increased its predicted layoffs at Schriever Air Force Base in Colorado from 50 to 85.

T-Mobile

Following the April announcement that T-Mobile and Sprint would attempt to merge, the company’s union predicted such a move could mean 28,000 job cuts. But according to the Kansas City Star, the company was already preparing to layoff 500 employees at its headquarters this spring.

Verizon

In October, Verizon reportedly offered a “voluntary severance package” to 44,000 employees and outsourced thousands of information technology jobs to a company based in India.

Viacom

In August, after acquiring the California-based Awesomeness, the entertainment company reportedly laid off 98 employees — half the staff.

Walmart

In January, Walmart closed 63 Sam’s Club locations, laying off about 10,000 employees. The subsidiary’s CEO told the Wall Street Journal that this was part of a strategy “to transform the business.” The company also reportedly made hundreds of layoffs at its Walmart stores and corporate headquarters. The layoffs came almost at the exact same time as the company made a big show of giving a bonus to some employees in recognition of the tax cuts.

Walt Disney

According to Variety, Disney’s Consumer Products Interactive Media Group laid off fewer than 50 employees in September. Deadline also reported layoffs of fewer than 20 employees at the company’s Digital Disney Network in November.

Association of American Railroads

The trade association for the rail industry represents railroads across the nation. At least two of its members, Union Pacific and CSX, have reportedly made layoffs in 2018.

Edison Electric Institute

The trade association for the electric industry represents numerous American electrical utilities. At least two of its core members, AES and PPL, reportedly decided to cut jobs in 2018, as did two affiliated companies, General Electric and Schneider Electric.

The National Retail Federation

The National Retail Federation does not publicly disclose its members, but major retail companies cut thousands of jobs in 2018, including many positions at companies like Toys ‘R’ Us, Macy’s, Sears/Kmart, J.C. Penney, and Foot Locker.