After the August $13.9 billion acquisition of Electronic Data Systems, Hewlett-Packard announced plans to cut 7.5% of its work force, amounting to 24,600 jobs lost ? almost half of which will occur in the United States. The layoffs are the result of reorganization efforts as H-P attempts to unify the computer services business with its own. The acquisition and subsequent move for greater cost efficiency is geared towards making H-P more aggressive in light of other technology services firms (like I.B.M.) and competition in India.
See "Hewlett-Packard Cuts 25,000 Jobs After E.D.S. Purchase", Ashlee Vance, The New York Times, September 15, 2008