Frustrated over being laid off from his job, a disgruntled engineer from Silicon Valley, California decided to take the matter into his own hands and killed three people, all believed to be his former co-workers and managers.
Yesterday, the man, known as Jing Wu, shot dead the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Sid Agrawal and the Operation’s Vice President, Brian Pugh, who were both high ranking managers at SiPort Inc., the company he worked before he was terminated.
The third victim’s identity, a woman, was yet to be made public.
The shocking incident happened inside the company compound, near the office building when the suspect came back after being fired from job to exact revenge. Soon after the fatal shooting, Jing Wu was said to leave the company premise in a sports utility vehicle.
His last position was reported to be as a lead product test engineer. The 47-year old suspect, who is still at large, is now being located and the police are still searching for his whereabouts.
As the slump of the weakening economy continues, companies from all sort of industries have started to retrench people in order to cut cost and reduce losses. SiPort is a medium size semiconductor company specializing in fabless technology and develops silicon solutions mainly for the mobile market.
The Malaysia government is currently studying the possibility of setting up a ‘retrenchment fund’ that would cushion the impact to the affected workers in case of lay offs and terminations.
The idea came in the wake of the global financial uncertainties that may result in companies closing down, selling or downsizing their companies.
If the fund system does come into practice, the employees will see a portion of their salary deducted on monthly basis, which goes into their retrenchment fund and acts as some sort of income protection. It will also safeguard the employees in case the company went bankrupt and is unable to pay compensation to workers.
Under the Malaysia Employment Act 1955, workers who are subject to retrenchment need to be compensated and the compensation plan must be made transparent to the authority in advance before the retrenchment exercise takes place.
At the moment, a study by the HR Ministry is underway to look into the exact way of the implementation as well as evaluating the feasibility of such fund system and whether this would be a feasible option for workers. The HR Ministry is presently consulted by some experts from the acturial and the International Labour Organization (ILO) before further decision is made.
10 top paying white-collar jobs in the US (United States), as recently published by Forbes in October 2008. Salaries are yearly average and in US dollar, with the job description explained accordingly.
1. Commercial Lending Director
Job scope: Lead a team in aggressive building, growing and maintenance of commercial lending or loan portfolios. Oversee the corresponding relationship with customers, and develop ways to reach wider range of new prospects.
Annual salary: $130,400.
2. Development Officer
Job scope: Work with the marketing team in spearheading the fund or capital raising activities by approaching corporations, individuals and other profit oriented bodies to present win-win proposals. The health care is found to be the highest paid industry for a Development Officer.
Annual salary: $121,900.
3. General Manager
Job scope: Oversee the general running of the company operation and ensure that business is heading to the right direction by optimizing the resources available. Formulate the strategic direction for the company and establish the blueprint about company’s short term and long term goals.
Annual salary: $121,500.
4. Engineering Director
Responsible for the overall technical and engineering function of the company. Establish and enforce high standard of quality, design, reliability and safety of the engineering operation. Close liaison with the customers, whenever needed to ensure product conformance and compliance.
Annual salary: $113,000.
5. Director of Operations
Job scope: Direct, implement, control and manage all aspects of operation including planning and development, customer relation, inventory services, facilities, maintenance and manpower utilization. A member of top management team who holds key role in strategic planning and budgeting initiatives.
Annual salary: $112,000.
6. Information Systems Director
Job scope: Plan, manage and direct the internal operation of the information system functions including system development, user services, policy and procedures, integration, data analysis and inter-departmental interfacing. Apply specific knowledge of application in complex technical scenarios.
Annual salary: $107,600.
7. National Sales Manager
Job scope: Tasked with main role in devising strategy to increase sales and turnover, steer market growth, and implement bulletproof solution for performance evaluation. Normally responsible in overseeing 2 or more sales division with nationwide presence market presence.
Annual salary: $107,500.
8. Controller
Job scope: Direct and coordinate an effective financial planning and expenditure management. Act as an adviser to the top management and recommend efficient measurement for company’s performance. A Controller usually reports to the Chief Financial Officer (CFO).
Annual salary: $107,100.
9. Finance Director
Job scope: Lead, plan and direct financial related aspect of company operation including accounting, auditing, purchasing, budget and expenditures, revenue administration and the overall running of the finance division. Establish a benchmark for competent financial management and maintain effective leadership and relationship.
Annual salary: $106,700.
10. Information Security Director
Job scope: Undertake responsibility in devising the security policy, risk assessment, policy and procedures, compliance and data protection. Coordinate all technical related programs on IT infrastructure, audit, project implementation, risk mitigation and incident management.
Annual salary: $105,000.
