Dot-com Layoffs Level OffDot-com Layoffs Level Off

The latest monthly rundown by outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas shows dot-com layoffs are at their lowest level since November with 9,216 in June, down 31% from May and another 24% from April's record high of 17,554 layoffs. The report says, "The slight decline may be the only bright spot in what was otherwise a dismal first half of 2001 for dot-commers."

Do the figures mean the worst of the shakeout is over? Or is it simply that after all the dot-com failures and consolidations, there are simply fewer employees left to sack?

That's definitely part of it, says John Challenger, the firm's president. "Since total employment has dropped significantly, companies are just no longer around."