National

Delta Air Lines, Inc.: Delta Air Lines will eliminate 4,000 jobs through voluntary buyouts, 2,000 more than the company announced in March. Delta recently agreed to merge with Northwest Airlines.

US Airways Group, Inc.: US Airways, one of the nation's leading passenger airlines, will reduce domestic flights and cut 1,700 jobs in an effort to offset rising fuel costs. Affected employees include pilots, flight attendants, airport employees, and staff and management personnel.

Rohm and Haas Company: Rohm and Haas, a maker of chemicals, will shut down production of its acrylic emulsions line along with a "significant portion" of its plastics additives line at its Louisville, Ky., plant, eliminating approximately 220 of the location's 353 jobs there. The move is part of an overall plan to eliminate a total of 925 jobs, mainly in North America, in response to higher energy costs and weakening consumer demands for end products, which include paint.

The McClatchy Company: McClatchy Co., a leading U.S. newspaper publisher whose portfolio includes such well-known names as The Miami Herald and The Kansas City Star, will cut 10 percent of its workforce in response to falling ad revenue. Bloomberg reports that staff reductions will be achieved through a combination of attrition, employee buyouts, and firings.

WellCare Health Plans Inc.: WellCare Health Plans Inc. of Tampa said recently that it eliminated 208 jobs, or about 5 percent of its work force, with 78 of the job losses in Florida. The managed-care company said most reductions were in its Florida and New York Medicaid sales operations. WellCare, which has been under federal investigation since late October, recently said it may post a loss for the quarter that ended March 31.

American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc.: American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc. says it will cut its hourly work force in the United States by 2,000 as a result of a new contract ratified recently by the United Auto Workers union. The auto-parts maker said its total hourly labor costs would drop to between $30 and $45 per worker from $73.48 before the new contract. It hopes to reduce its work force with buyouts and early retirement offers and the closing of two U.S. factories. The remaining positions would probably be eliminated through attrition.