The fate of Australia’s Digital and Compaq workforces in the wake of shareholder approval of Digital’s $9.6bn acquisition of Compaq, is likely to be decided later this month. Compaq president and CEO Eckhardt Pfeiffer has already announced global lay-offs in the order of 17,000 employees over the next 12 months, with 15,000 of that total to be shaved from Digital’s payroll. So far, local Compaq executives have met with Digital personnel to talk about how the companies will meld, but there has been no announcement on products or employment prospects for local staff. Meanwhile, in the US, Earl Mason, Compaq’s chief financial officer, has indicated that there will be an announcement later in the month about Compaq’s plans to rationalize duplicated headquarters and factories in other countries.
