State briefs 3/22/07

Applebee's plans to close 24 restaurants

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Applebee's International Inc. said Wednesday it will close 24 company-owned restaurants that aren't meeting performance goals. The Overland Park, Kan.-based company typically closes one or two restaurants a year. The big jump comes as Applebee's is struggling with declining sales and a shareholder activist demanding the company sell off many of its 528 corporate-owned locations. "These restaurant closures will have a positive impact on our future earnings, cash flow and return on invested capital," David Goebel, the company's chief executive officer, said in a news release. Ellison said the typical Applebee's restaurant has five managers and 60 to 70 regular employees. She said the company will transfer most of the managers and give the regular employees an opportunity to apply for jobs at other nearby locations. The company has not yet released specific locations targeted for closing.

Chrysler cuts in St. Louis worse than expected

ST. LOUIS -- The job losses at DaimlerChrysler's suburban St. Louis operation will be worse than previously reported. The automaker said it will eliminate more than 1,900 jobs at its two plants in Fenton -- more than 600 more than previously thought. Spokeswoman Michelle Tinson said the additional 600 job cuts had been privately disclosed to unionized workers, but were not publicly reported in February when the company first announced its cutbacks here. Tinson said the cuts are part of DaimlerChrysler's ongoing efforts to improve efficiency at its plants, and are not related to the 1,300 job cuts announced last month. The company hopes to eliminate all of the jobs through retirement and voluntary severance packages, Tinson said.

-- From wire reports