Screwed: 2,300 at AOL

A daily review of the employment fallout around the country and the world.

Today’s Total: 2,816

Some Good News: Ohlone College avoids 6 staff layoffs and opts for a furlough.

AOL will reduce its staff by a third, laying off about 2,300 people…BusinessWeek is reducing its staff by 130…Fresno, CA mayor is proposing 125 municipal layoffs and 5 furlough days between New Year’s and Christmas for most other city employees… Fairfax County Public Libraries will be laying off 107 employees, including those working full- and part-time in the administration, library operations, and technical operations departments… Associated Press has laid off an additional 33 newsroom employees-resulting in 90 layoffs this week-reaching its goal of a 10 percent payroll cut…

Recessionwire Discount: Wine and Charcuterie Friday Night

Already hungry for Friday night? (We are.) This will really set your mouth watering: St. Francis Winery is having a wine-and-charcuterie pairing event in New York tomorrow night. It features the Sonoma winery’s Wild Oak wines and cured meats from Salumeria Biellese, which stocks top chefs, including meat-loving Mario Batali.

Plus, it’s educational, with a discussion of wine-making and meat-curing, in case you needed inspiration for that new career.

Recessionwire readers get $5 off the $35 ticket…

Thanksgiving Road-Trip Games

Next week, 38.4 million of us are expected to go “over the hills and through the woods”—or at least to travel by car to a Turkey Day destination. That’s just a slight 1.4 percent uptick from last year. Back then, gas prices were much lower, having fallen off from a high of $4.10 a gallon in the summer of 2008 to around $1.80 by the time Thanksgiving rolled around. But nerves were perhaps also more frayed then, too, as we watched the banking system continue to teeter.

This year, the national average price of gas is about $2.70 a gallon, so we will have to spend more to get to grandfather’s house. Pair that with a continuing climb in the number of people unemployed, and you’d actually think the number of travelers would be even lower.

Either way, as you contemplate the hours you’ll spend on a jam-packed I-95, or wherever you may be, we’d like to bring back the Recession Road-Trip Games we offered up in the summer…

Downturnaround Deals: Gap, Red Envelope, HP, GameStop, BackCountry.com

Some of us are starting to spend again (a little). Every week, we post online coupons for food, clothes, books, gadgets and more, hand-picked for Recessionwire readers by the nice people over at Savings.com.

Take 25% off sitewide at Gap. Expires Sunday…too good not to post though. (See more Gap coupons.)…

Recession Briefing 11.19: Making America Run

What you need to know today to survive and thrive in the recession.

Americans are lacing up athletic shoes and signing up to run in 5Ks, 10-milers and even marathons in record numbers. Running “gives you something to control — you can’t control the stock market or the economy, but you can control your health,” said Ryan Lamppa with Running USA. (Agence France Presse)

With the national unemployment rate above 10%, and employed folks looking to bolster budgets by taking second jobs, the competition for seasonal retail, movie theater, package-delivery and other holiday posts is fierce this year. (USA Today)

A Human Rights Watch report on Cuba takes the government of President Raúl Castro to task for, among other things, jailing those without jobs. The report cited the cases of dozens of people charged with “dangerousness” for being unemployed. (New York Times/Economix)…

Screwed: 1,700 at Air France-KLM

A daily review of the employment fallout around the country and the world.

Today’s Total: 4,403

Air France-KLM anticipates the “voluntary departure” of 1,700 employees after recording losses in the second quarter… Verizon will reduce its workforce by 1,000 people in D.C., Virginia and Maryland before the end of the year… Aetna is set to hand out 625 pink slips… Alcoa Howmet eliminated 250 positions at its plant in Hampton, Va… The Hennepin County Medical Center in Minnesota closed two clinics and laid off 150 workers… Arizona’s Department of Transportation announced Wednesday their intent to lay off 115 workers in response to budget cuts… Invista will reduce its workforce by 110 at its plant in Waynesboro, Va… San Francisco’s Municipal Transportation Agency filed notice of its plans to cut 110 employees in order to compensate for a projected budget shortfall… BusinessWeek announced the demise of 100 of its staffers as its operations move over to Bloomberg… Maryland’s Board of Public Works approved budget cuts of $360 million and the layoffs of 70 workers… Guardian Automotive Products Inc. of Upper Sandusky, Ohio laid off 59 employees due to a “serious downturn in business”…

Curbing Fido’s Financial Strain

Having a pet is a fine balance: We love our pooches, but we know that pet hair isn’t a fashion accessory. They burrow in our purses, poke out of our car windows, and try to lick our face masks away. We’ve compiled the best insider tips to help you scratch away at your pet’s expenses—you and Junior won’t remember how you coexisted without us!

Look For Veterinary Colleges. Money isn’t a reason not to bring your pet in for regular checkups, but vet visits are expensive. Do a quick Google search or refer to this list to see if there are any veterinary colleges in your area. If so, they are probably looking for new patients and likely offered reduced rates. Don’t worry about putting Mr. Fuzzy in the hands of students—they are supervised and accredited for treating animals!…

Kill the Recession with Your Brain

Tom Cruise tries to scootch ashtrays with his mind. Why not put yours towards something more…um, less freaky?

Over at her site, Escape from Cubicle Nation, Pamela Shim lays out ten ways you can stimulate the economy in your corner of the world. It’s straightforwad, non-Scientology stuff…

Recession Briefing 11.18: Downturn Brings Out the Werewolves

What you need to know today to survive and thrive in the recession.

Why are werewolves so hot right now? Bob Powers and Ritch Duncan believe that the plight of the werewolf reflects the American economic mood at the current moment. (Huffington Post)

A Canadian real estate company was the winning bidder for Detroit’s Silverdome, snatching it up for just $583,000. The 80,000-seat Silverdome was the biggest stadium in the National Football League when it was built in 1975 for $55.7 million. (CNN/Assignment Detroit)

Will the shared experience (in some cases, shared indirectly — through family and close friends) of the recession move public opinions so dramatically that we see fundamental change in the economy or society as a result? (San Francisco Chronicle)…

Screwed: 500 at Pacific Gas & Electric

A daily review of the employment fallout around the country and the world.

Today’s Total: 785

Some Good News: Michigan State Police is recalling 55 troopers back to work.

Pacific Gas & Electric will lay off 500 employees by the end of the year, about two percent of its workforce… Boeing Co. had begun giving layoff notices to approximately 250 employees at their Global Services and Support center yesterday but it turns out that there may be job growth in the company’s future… Due to a decrease in sales tax revenue, the city of Las Vegas will lay off 19 workers… At least 13 associates have been laid off from Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP… Hudson Area Schools Board of Ed has approved an additional 3 staff layoffs… Mayor Bloomberg has not ruled out the possibility of municipal New York City layoffs to help cut down the budget… Though its layoffs were previously reported to reach up to 30 employees, game developer Krome Studios has now let go of an undisclosed amount of employees throughout its three studio locations… Duke University may need to lay off additional staff to meet the limits of its budget.