Northrop plans to cut 900 jobs

Northrop Grumman expects to lay off 900 employees, 500 of them in Pascagoula, by the end of the year. Phil Teel, president of Northrop Grumman Ship Systems, said a dip in the number of contracts that have been awarded to the company over the past few years led to the layoffs. The company had anticipated layoffs for 2005 and 2006 before it begins increasing the work force in 2007 and 2008.