Computer Associates International Inc is considering a $6m plan to boost staffing levels in the New Year to handle its customers’ potential Y2K date conversion problems, according to its quarterly report filed yesterday with the Securities and Exchanges Commission.
CA said the charge would be booked in its first quarter earnings covering the three months to March 31 if it implements the plan. Doug Robinson, CA’s senior vice president of investor relations, told ComputerWire that the contingency had been prompted by customer concerns. He said the concern arose from the operational environment in which CA’s products run, which feature lines of customized code. The cash is intended to cover the cost of temporary personnel to replace in-house staff redeployed to client sites. Robinson said CA had detailed the Y2K status of its more than 500 software products on its web site for more than two years.
For its own corporate systems, Islandia, New York-based CA said it expected the total data change upgrade bill would be $30m, the vast majority of which it has already paid.
