Wisconsin's largest commercial printer will cut 550 jobs, most of them in Wisconsin. Sussex-based Quad Graphics will eliminate 400 jobs at five plants in southeast Wisconsin. The rest will be cut from Quad's facilities in four other states, for a total of 5.6 percent of the firm's domestic workforce of about 9800. Quad is the nation's third-largest commercial printer.
CEO Joel Quadracci says “there is simply too much of everything chasing too little demand.” Quadracci says he'd had hoped to see better indicators as the New Year began – but it's now clear the economic downturn will be longer and more severe than he expected. Still, he says Quad-Graphics leads the printing industry in profit margins and with plenty of access to capital, will continue to be a strong player in the industry for a long time.
The job cuts take effect immediately, affecting both production and administrative positions.
