High-tech workers cope with loss of jobs

When Mark Pollini was laid off from his job at Marconi Communications in August 2001, his initial reaction was, "Now what?"

"At the time, I sat back with my family, and I said, 'What are we going to do?'" he recalled recently.

They didn't want to move. Pollini's two children were doing well in school, and he and his wife loved the area.

"We decided we're going to find a way to work here," Pollini said.

But where to work was the question Pollini and others throughout the technology sector have been asking themselves as high-tech companies have been forced to purge their payrolls in light of a downturned economy.

Some 4,000 jobs in the 10-county southwestern Pennsylvania region have been lost in computer, engineering and business consulting industries in the seven quarters beginning January 2001, according to statistics provided by Roberta Wilson, regional industry and business analyst with the state Department of Labor and Industry. Most of those losses have occurred between fourth quarter 2001 and third quarter 2002. A net 3,000 jobs were lost in that time.

For every company that has expanding in the area, there are many more laying off or closing altogether. Askesis Development Group, Inc., a Chicago-based provider of behavioral health and social services technology solutions, announced in June it is relocating its corporate headquarters to Pittsburgh, employing 50. But in that same month, Inrange Technologies Corp., a New Jersey-based software solutions company, started laying off its 47 local employees when it decided to close its Pittsburgh office. Marconi laid off 45 a month later.

The reasons are two-fold, said Tim Slevin, senior vice president for Parker/Hunter Inc., in Pittsburgh.

Start-ups that had received substantial funding to get things rolling have found that money diminished. "That's causing a down-sizing in the organizations, a reduction in head count," Slevin said.

"On the other side, we've had a contraction in demand in many sectors within technology and prior to that you had a substantial growth in demand," Slevin said. Many established companies allowed their work force and research and development in new areas grow as demand grew.

But then that demand ceased. "When you've had a contraction in revenues as many companies have had in the last number of years, you're going to have to reduce the size of your administration to your revenue level," Slevin said.

That's what happened to Pollini, 45, of Marshall Township, Allegheny County, who began working at Marconi in 1998 when it was known as Fore Systems.

The Philadelphia native started in the technology field back in 1976 when he worked on the production line of a company that built microcomputers. A layoff at Madge Networks Inc. came at a time when technology jobs were plentiful.

A former colleague called him about a job opening in sales at Fore Systems.

"Things moved along quite well, and then all of a sudden the wall came crashing down," Pollini said. That was August 2001.

He had money in the bank from stock options when Marconi bought Fore Systems. That savings has helped, but it couldn't last forever.

"Being technical in today's market, especially a middle-aged man, I'll be lost in the shuffle with 400 other resumes at least for every job I apply for," Pollini said. In order to retain a similar pay scale, he'd have to get a job in the sales arena. But that was a tough market.

Pollini started a small business making wooden gift boxes for wine, but finances kept that on the back burner. He wired home networks to try to keep some funds moving in.

Then last summer, his wife suggested an entirely different direction -- real estate.

He took a class, then a licensing test. He was licensed in September and now works as an independent contractor at the Coldwell Banker office in the North Hills.

Pollini said it's been slow going so far, but he started getting some clients after the new year began. "It can be a cyclical business," he said. "I'm used to a steady paycheck. That might not be there anymore."

For now, no money is coming in from his real estate business. Pollini's wife is looking for work so the family can get medical benefits. The kids currently are covered by the state's CHIP program. Pollini thinks he can eventually get back to his former paycheck.

"I'm not opposed to working hard," he said. "It's a lot better than sitting around, scratching your head, trying to find out what you're going to do."

While Pollini has had some time to think about his next move, two other area men are still wondering what they are going to do next.

Lonnie Ruozzi, 30, of White Oak, had worked since 1994 at Ebara Solar in Rostraver Township until he was laid off in October. Ebara Solar, which makes solar cells for numerous applications, lost financial backing from its Japanese parent company, necessitating layoffs.

"We kind of expected a slowdown to a certain point. But we really weren't expecting a layoff to happen like did happen," Ruozzi said.

Now Ruozzi stays home to watch his infant daughter, unsure of what his next move will be.

"I kind of made the decision during the past couple months that I was going to stay at home and be with my daughter," he said in January. "In the next month, I'll start trying to look again."

What kind of job he wants is still open. No other company in the area makes solar cells.

His wife's full-time job and unemployment benefits are keeping the family afloat right now.

"It's paying the bills," he said. "That's the big thing."

Jay Miller, 28, of McCandless, got married and bought a house in 2002. And then, in December, he got laid off from his job at Source W in Trafford.

"I worked there for about two years, and they were just getting slower and slower, laying off people," he said.

Miller was a software engineer at the company, which builds Internet sites for customers in the Pittsburgh area.

At the end of the day on Dec. 9, he got a pink slip.

"It was what they call furlough, which is a temporary layoff because of lack of business ... but they really don't anticipate getting any more work in just because things have been so bad. ... I have looked a lot," he said in January. "I haven't found a ton of opportunities. Maybe two or three places I have submitted my resume, but I really haven't heard a whole lot back from them."

His wife's job at the Pittsburgh Technology Council brings in income. "We just got married in April, so most of our savings went to the wedding, and we just bought a house in August," Miller said. "It's kind of rough there."

Miller said he would consider moving to find a job, but he doubts his wife would want to leave.

"As of right now, I'm just looking in the current field I'm in," he said. " ... I've had friends who were laid off last year. They've found positions now, just for considerably less money more than anything else. ... I'll probably have to take a position that's $15,000 to $20,000 less than I was making. I think staying within my field is all of how much of a paycut am I willing to take."

As for Pollini, the folks he used to work with at Marconi have gone in different directions. One went back to academia. Another started his own business. Still another found a job at a small tech company and was laid off again.

"A lot of people are making rapid changes," Pollini said. "I would love to see the whole technology sector recover. I decided to go in a completely new direction. It's difficult to reinvent yourself. That's what I have had to do. But on the other hand, it's very exciting. I see a lot of good things on the horizon."