Job losses ripple through region, state

As the state announced a 1 percentage-point jump yesterday in the Richmond region's jobless rate to 7.9 percent, another major layoff began to hit the area.

Wachovia Securities laid off 500 employees in its Richmond-area operations this week as the single biggest chunk of job losses from the financial firm's ongoing merger with A.G. Edwards took hold.

Most of the affected Wachovia employees worked in operations or information technology and had been expecting layoffs, the company said.

"None of these people were surprised," Wachovia spokesman Tony Mattera said yesterday.

The Virginia Employment Commission and other agencies providing support to dislocated workers have been swamped as the effects of the recession, which began in December 2007, began to take hold late last year.

The Wachovia layoffs will put new pressure on regional efforts to help residents from around the region cope with a wave of plant closings and job losses.

"It's been anticipated, and obviously this is another hit to the community," said George T. Drumwright Jr., deputy county manager in Henrico County, where the layoffs and corporate bankruptcies have been concentrated. "We're prepared to help these people the best that we can."

Statewide, the seasonally unadjusted jobless rate rose to 7 percent in February, up from 6.4 percent a month earlier, according to VEC data released yesterday. The United States had an unemployment rate of 8.9 in February, up from 8.5 percent.

Arlington County had the lowest jobless rate of 4.4 percent, while Martinsville had the highest rate in the state at 20.2 percent. The highest metropolitan area rate was Danville, with 12.3 percent.

Only four localities in the Richmond region -- Chesterfield, Goochland, Hanover and Powhatan counties -- had jobless rates below the state average. Richmond's rate jumped to 9.8 percent, up 1 percentage point.

Petersburg, with 14.9 percent unemployment, had the highest rate in the area, up from 13.4 percent in January. Hopewell and Sussex had rates of 12.2 percent, up from 10.4 percent.

"We've been hit hard by a couple of large businesses that have really been at the mercy of this dreadful economy," said Katherine E. Busser, chairwoman of the Greater Richmond Chamber and an executive vice president at Capital One Services Inc.

In February, memory-chip maker Qimonda North America announced it was closing down a manufacturing plant in eastern Henrico. About 1,000 people lost their jobs that month alone. In all, 1,350 will eventually be laid off.

LandAmerica Financial Group Inc. and Circuit City Stores Inc. also had layoffs that month.

"It's just pretty much a continuation of the same thing of what we had in December and January, only we had more of it," said William F. Mezger, the commission's chief economist.

The Greater Richmond Chamber is helping businesses weather the recession, is helping new enterprises get off the ground and is supporting displaced workers. Focusing on long-term job growth is also a priority, Busser said.

The Capital Region Employment Transition Center, which opened less than a month ago to help laid-off workers, is bracing for a higher demand for services with Wachovia's latest action and the rising need for assistance as people's severance benefits dwindle.

"You need to be prepared," said Leontine Jameson, director of the center, located at 4060 Innslake Drive in western Henrico. "They may not all show up, but again, they may."

Since its March 9 opening, the regional center had registered, through last Thursday, 765 people from 10 localities across the region. Participants have gotten help with a variety of needs, from applying for unemployment benefits and writing résumés to getting help with mental-health services and human services.

Many have undergone testing for aptitude and skills that may be transferable to a new job, while others have received detailed counseling for mounting financial problems.

The center also has had some success with its central mission of matching unemployed people with new jobs. An unidentified financial-services company is preparing to hire 32 people recommended by a private job recruitment firm, National Associates Inc., based in Washington. Two other potential employees recommended for the jobs are expected to be hired by another company recruiting new workers.

"We are seeing job orders now start to come in that we were not seeing in February," said Pat Haynes, owner of Commonwealth Personnel Consultants Inc. in Henrico.

The Capital Region Employment Transition Center is run by the Capital Regional Workforce Partnership, a new organization of eight localities in the region, and funded by a $500,000 state grant.

Contact Michael Martz at (804) 649-6964 or mmartz@timesdispatch.com.

Contact Emily C. Dooley at (804) 649-6016 or edooley@timesdispatch.com.