Google announced yesterday that it would lay off 100 recruiters, signifying a broad slow-down in hiring. Google has also recently laid off 300 ?redundant? employees after the acquisition of DoubleClick Inc., and halted business with several of its independent contractors. The company also announced plans to close three engineering plants, one each in Texas, Norway, and Sweden, though the company hopes to retain the 70 employees of the offices. Laszlo Block, vice president of people operations, said the company regretted having to make the decision, but had realized they really ?needed to go further.?
See "Google to lay off 100 recruiters, close engineering offices", Chris Gaither, Los Angeles Times, January 14, 2009