GlobalFoundries, simultaneously competitor, collaborator and suitor to International Business Machines Inc., has opened a recruitment office less than three miles from IBM’s plant in Essex Junction.
A spokesman for GlobalFoundries confirmed Tuesday that the company is looking to fill about 400 jobs in its Malta, New York, computer chip manufacturing facility. Travis Bullard said GlobalFoundries has signed a lease on about 1,500 square feet of office space at 64 Knight Lane in Williston. The office will initially support a team of approximately 10-15 people, he said.
“It’s certainly uncomfortable,” said Frank Cioffi, president of the Greater Burlington Industrial Corp. “They’re looking to specifically target IBM Vermont workers, so that’s not a comfortable scenario by any means. They come into the market area and target the best people. But this kind of thing happens.”
Cioffi said the strategy, though somewhat awkward, is not unusual. Companies across sectors poach each other’s talent every day.
Cioffi said he didn’t have any additional information about the recruitment efforts. GlobalFoundries and IBM spokespeople did not respond to VTDigger inquiries.
Expectations for IBM’s future in Vermont have been rocky for years. A series of layoffs that started in the 1990s most recently carved about 560 people off the company’s payroll in Vermont since July. The total workforce is now estimated to be at least 4,000, though IBM stopped releasing location-specific job numbers in 2010.
Despite the recent layoff and potential new attrition from IBM due to GlobalFoundries’ recruitment efforts, Cioffi remains optimistic about the Essex Junction plant.
“IBM here in Vermont is doing really well,” Cioffi said. He said after contraction to adapt to leaner workloads, the Essex Junction facility is operating at a high capacity and hiring engineers, technicians and production workers.
“(It) is a really good sign that we’re a really viable and competitive business unit. So that’s encouraging for us,” Cioffi said. He said the Vermont operations, where production is focused on chips for cellphones and other mobile electronics, are not likely what’s weighing down the division’s profitability.
IBM has long been rumored to be searching for a buyer for its semiconductor manufacturing business. Many say talks have most recently centered around a deal with GlobalFoundries, the Emirati upstart that’s quickly grown into a dominant force in the global semiconductor industry. Company representatives from both IBM and GlobalFoundries consistently refuse to comment on the speculation.
All had been silent on the rumor front since July, when GlobalFoundries reportedly would not accept $1 billion to take the unit off IBM’s hands. But industry blogger Daniel Nenni reported Sept. 17 that talks between the two continue, and IBM had reportedly doubled its incentive for the sale.
