News

Aimee Dodge
February 26, 2010

Job Cuts in Bangor, Who’s Next?

The unemployment rate in Bangor is 7.10%, just lower than the national average, and jobs in the area have decreased by 0.60%. Although the unemployment rate is below average, it is still a major area of concern for local people out of work and looking for jobs.
The Bangor area has been hit hard since the recession came to Maine. One of the largest employers in the area, Easter Maine Medical Center, has already cut 24 filled positions and eliminated another 52 unfilled ones. The medical center told the Bangor Daily News that the measure was “essential to ‘getting EMMC back on track.’” They may be planning another round of cuts in the near future. Eastern Maine Medical Center is not the only major employer in the area that is folding under the recession pressure. Penobscot Bay Medical Center announced recently that they too will cut positions. They plan to cut ten positions and reduce hours for several others. They may be cutting more positions in the near future as well. Movie Gallery, a movie rental franchise, recently filed chapter eleven. They are in the process of shutting down not only the six stores in Maine, which includes two stores in Bangor, but eight hundred stores across the country. Movie gallery stores employ between ten and twenty workers on average. Other local businesses, including music clubs and restaurants, have also started cutting positions or have closed down completely. Club Ice, which recently opened, is now closed, to many people’s surprise.
The recession is far from over so the question is who will be next to cut positions. Wal-Mart is a large employer in the Bangor area as well at St. Joseph Hospital, who has worked very hard in recent months to cut cost within the hospital. Will these major employers be cutting next?