Jabil Circuit Inc.

After securing nearly $35-million in government incentives to add jobs and keep its corporate headquarters in St. Petersburg, Jabil Circuit recently announced it was laying off 120 workers. The news came as government subsidies for local companies are under more intense scrutiny and just two months after the secretive manner with which St. Petersburg granted Jabil incentives drew public outrage. Economic development officials call the layoffs unfortunate but said they were unrelated to the subsidies pledged to Jabil. Only by building a new headquarters in St. Petersburg and creating hundreds of high-wage jobs, they said, will the company realize any benefit from the public purse. In written statements, the company said the layoffs were unrelated to any plans to ship work to China but stemmed from the economic downturn. There are no plans for future layoffs, the company said, and it's hoped many workers can be rehired when business picks up. Jabil, a Fortune 500 electronics manufacturing company, has outposts around the globe, with 75,000 employees in 20 countries. The company has a growing presence in China, India, Mexico, Vietnam and Ukraine, all locations with cheap labor and low manufacturing costs.