National

IndyMac Bancorp: Mortgage lender IndyMac Bancorp Inc., struggling to raise capital to stay in business, said recently it has stopped accepting new loan submissions in its main mortgage lending divisions and plans to cut 3,800 jobs, or more than half of its work force. The move comes as the lender works with U.S. banking regulators, who have determined the company is no longer well capitalized and have asked it to submit a new business plan designed to improve its financial footing, IndyMac’s Chairman and Chief Executive said in a letter to shareholders. In the letter, he said the Pasadena, Calif.-based holding company for IndyMac Bank has not succeeded in raising additional capital and does not expect to succeed until the housing and mortgage markets are more stable.

Tailblazer Health Enterprises LLC: A BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina subsidiary lost and gained some Medicare business as part of the restructuring of how the Center for Medicare and Medicaid handles claims processing. Trailblazer Health Enterprises, based in Dallas, will close its Timonium, Md., office. The company has been a Medicare contractor since 1966, when the Medicare program began. In Timonium, Md., 130 employees will lose their jobs as a result of the closure. Trailblazer has more than 1,100 employees and accounts for about 6 percent of total revenue for BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina. The Columbia-based insurer has about 11,000 employees and more than 20 subsidiaries, with operations around the country. Most have their headquarters in Columbia.

UnitedHealth Group Inc.: Shares of UnitedHealth Group plunged to nearly a five-year low recently, a day after the company disclosed plans to cut five percent of its work force and a lower profit growth forecast for 2008. Adjusting for splits, stock was trading at its lowest price since late 2003. Recently, UnitedHealth said that it would shed 4,000 jobs in effort to cut costs and forecast an adjusted profit for 2008.

American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc.: Auto supplier American Axle and Manufacturing Holdings Inc. said recently it plans to eliminate between 300 and 350 U.S. salaried jobs because of slumping auto sales. The cuts come in addition to the elimination of 2,000 U.S. hourly jobs at the supplier, or more than half the company's 3,650 manufacturing workers. American Axle has around 2,000 salaried workers worldwide, a spokeswoman said. The company said in late May that it might make some salaried reductions in order to shrink its U.S. business to fit falling demand, but it didn't give further details. The company expects to meet its targets through early retirement packages, attrition, not filling open positions and possible layoffs, she said.

BorgWarner Inc.: Nearly half of the hourly workforce at the BorgWarner Automotive plant have been laid off in what some workers believe is the beginning of the end for the plant, which is already scheduled to shut down no later than April 2009. The layoff of 193 workers came recently, just before the plant's traditional summer break.

Cardinal Health: Health care products and services company Cardinal Health Inc. said that it plans to cut 600 jobs, or about 1.5 percent of its global work force, and consolidate its business into two primary segments. The company planned to group its product distribution centers and nuclear pharmacies into one group and its medical products into another. The cuts will include 160 positions that are currently open and will not be filled. Cardinal Health, based in the Columbus suburb of Dublin, employs about 40,000 people on five continents. Employees whose jobs are eliminated will be offered severance benefits, according to the company. Cardinal Health is a global manufacturer and distributor of medical and surgical supplies.

Columbia Falls Aluminum Co.: Columbia Falls Aluminum expects to lay off about 125 hourly workers when it shuts down a pot line. Soaring power prices are the main reason that CFAC officials announced a curtailment in aluminum production at the plant this spring. Shutting down one pot line can leave between 120 and 160 people out of work. Those laid off will be eligible for 26 weeks of unemployment benefits. It's unclear how long the layoff will last. CFAC is a subsidiary of Glencore International AG.

Invensys Controls: Invensys Controls plans to shut down its Plain City office, which will lead to the loss of 59 jobs, a company official said. Invensys, which makes switches for appliances, said its move is tied to the company's decision last year to eliminate several product lines, which made it possible to consolidate the Plain City office with offices in Carol Stream, Ill., near Chicago. Some Ohio workers will be offered positions in Carol Stream, although Maynard declined to specify how many.

Johnson & Johnson: With sales flagging and cost-cutting at a premium, pharmaceutical companies have notified New Jersey of plans to trim or relocate more than 800 jobs in the coming months. Johnson & Johnson is merging its Ortho Biotech unit with another subsidiary, Centocor, and shifting 260 jobs in Bridgewater to Centocor's headquarters in Horsham, Pa., according to a spokesman. The company had previously disclosed the consolidation, but not the exact number of jobs exiting the state. In addition, Ortho Biotech notified the state it will cut 289 jobs nationwide, which includes 22 layoffs in New Jersey.