Show ry? t ‘ j WASHINGTON (AP) — Computer programmer Gun- ther Viktor if an unwilling work force dropout The Phoenix' resident was laid off in December 2001 after his employer a contractor com- pleted the proiect to which Viktor wasaasigned The work then dried upT For months Viktor looked e or con-for full-titract work Then eligible to retire and draw reduced Social Security benefits he decided to do so Hut he really wanted to work five more years “When I moved to Arizona eight years ago there were five or six pages of help want- ed ads m the computer section of the paper Viktor said “Today we’re lucky there’s two columns” The share of the US popu lation working or actively seeking ajob has fallen to 639 percent the lowest level in 16 years Economists say down all V rl its stores i POWAY Calif (AP) — t Troubled computer maker Gateway announced Thursday that it will shutter all of its stores next week and eliminate 200 jobs or nearly 40 per-force centtofitsw The company based in the San Diego suburb of Poway said the 188 stores will close on April 9 and workers will be dismissed as the store opera- wind down The company which has posted losses in 12 out of the last 13 quarters said it is exploring other options for customers to buy ‘its products Gateway has been strug- gling in a PC maiket dominated by Dell and d Co It has expanded its product line to televi include plasma-scrcd- n sions digital cameras and other consumer electronics recently completed its purchase of Irvine Calif- based eMachines Inc for $290 million and named Wayne Inouye its new chief executive the same job he held at eMachines Inouye replaced Gateway founder Ted Waitt who remains the company’s chairman Gateway was founded by Waitt in 1983 in an Iowa farmhouse and evolved into one of the world’s biggest and most influential computer makers over the next decade The company is known for its disboxes a tinctive tribute to its farm heritage The company moved its headquarters to the Sim Diego area six yean ago About 550 of its 6500 workers are based at its headquarters The cuts amount to 38 percent of the workforce I U8 pftputnlfrTfi pnflkHpaSfffi 'SMpmanr 672 T8 r September 655 ' J holdmg down the unem- P°ynMt rate whichwas 36 Pcentir i February March figures were being representative 675 Hlil February T4 iiiTHnlti?riinf I ' n WBiW mum ii(ll!li!l!lllignilRIIII!!iiliH!il West that lose nfactoiy or call center to competition overseas have little hope of replacing those jobs Zandi said Kevin Gregory 41 of Millinocket Maine was laid off in January 2003 from the ! Great Northern Paper mill which shut down and was sold in bankniptcy He decided to attend community college to earn an associate's degree in business management but sees no job prospects in his town “I don't want to move” he said “I've lived here my whole life When my money runs out I probably will have to Older workers are faring best in hiring these days The participation rate for people age 33 and older has risen of the state of the job market” he said “ft does- - April TO " part-tim- Hewlett-Packar- cow-spott- a )oh — 1tw tabor tarot i ffj it t f fits bin fntnn to Its lowont level In 16 yaars It namely rtaes during a recovery Labor men parttdpndon rata SMnonallyadtistnd The share of Mm total thi Midwest and Mountain counted the unemployment rate would be more than 7 per- cent said Mark Zandi chief economist at Economyxom “lb me that is much more Labor force at lowest level in 16 years ‘ n’t fed like a 56 percent job market It feds like more of a 7 ora 7)1 percent job maiket” In one bit or upbeat inews the Labor Department said Thursday that fewer people filed new applications to collect unemployment benefits last week a sign that compa nies may be feeling less inclined to cut more jobs The economy while growing is failing to produce a lot of new work to entice seekers Just 126500 net jobs were added in the past three months The I AP released Friday by the Labor Department Normally in a recovery the pie hear about the improving ecy“Jni(0PPortumtiesi they dually come - out of the woodwork Wb are seeing the opposite of what’s been normal in the past That’s why the jobless rate has really become somewhat of a mis- leading indicator” People not actively seeking work when the department ' conducts its survey of house-tion- s holds are not counted as unemployed Those people deciding to mtend school rate to caused the participation L fall 1 percentage points since the start of the recession in March 2001 This is the first time the participation rate has fallen 27 months into an economic recovery If those people who want jobs but aren’t looking were ssayrjr ment rate has remained relatively low rising only to 63 percent in June 2003 before declining But for people out of work the average job search was 203 weeks — a factor in declining efforts to keep look- ing economists said Smaller towns and cities in the rural South or in parts of who might require a higher salary blit wh more than off-sets it through better produc- tivity less need for costly and training offers the ability to mentor and less likelihood of job hop-ping4' said John Challenger chief executive of Challenger Gray and Christmas an c employment research firm time-consumi- c ed Dow Jones drops AT&T and others NEW YORK (AP) — Papa and Eastman Kodak are being dropped from the Dow Jones ' industrial average and replaced with other companies v in a switch that reflects the decline of US manufacturing and the rise of health care and financial services The three longtime compoindex nents Of the will be replaced April 8 by insurance giant AIG the tele-phone company Verizon and pharmaceutical maker Pfizer “Our main focus in this group of changes was not who do we kick out or replace ft was to recognize the trend of the growth of the financial or healtbhcare sectors” said John Prestbo editor of Dow Jones Indexes and markets editor of The WallStreet Journal The Jouinal’8 tbp editors select AT&T International 30-stoc- k par-ticul- ar v ' the Dow’s components “When it came to selecting companies to leave the Dow to : make ipornfor the new ones we took recognition of another trend and that is basic materials stocks have become less nportant less weighty in the market” Verizon joins another Baby Bell SBC Communications which was added in 1999 lt replaces its former parent AT&T which had been a Dow component once 1939 International Paper bad been in the index since 1936 and Kodiak since 1930 “Everybody looks at the Dow- - It’s a sign that your com pany realty is one of the V” said engines pf the i Jim Raphalian head of institutional tradingat Schwab Souhdview Capital Markets' “But oq the other hand it’s not so much an investment index as a balanced snapshot of the market And I think what they : woe trying to do here was balance ft with regard to fee new realities of the economy” i v Kodak the struggling film and camera conqiany mat has bwn one rtf the index's worst- -' performing stoclui down- played die change ’ : : : In Lam CMlN vmw r1Mand8undm1MaDIMalocaaoM:- - ' & iouni In Oanlw IR Ogdm W NMams Mm' In Pravs W Provo Tcmm OmNnl InaL Tbmw and IM sm bSa CRy PMitaN Pim and ThaDiaoovaf Card Wawalooma your pHanfaCiada Cart ThaAmartcanExpna Cant DtnaraaublntamallonalMaaareaidrVia Gaorn St Rrt cans i 'V ' - - IML |