AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT BLUESTEM BRANDS

Eden Prairie, Minnesota-based Bluestem Brands, an online catalog retailer, has announced a reorganization and the closure of its Fingerhut's St. Cloud regional hub and distribution center, located in Eatonton, Georgia.

The closure will affect 118 employees and is scheduled to occur in two phases, commencing on October 26, 2025, and concluding on November 14, 2025.

According to published reports, the closure is due to certain retail brands discontinuing new orders and eliminating the need for the facility's services.

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life, nor promises of a bright future. We see good people being laid off through no fault of their own. Just because something terrible hasn't happened yet doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, at any time, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. While many employees can read the writing on the wall, why do most assume it’s targeted at someone else? Are you now wondering, Am I Next?

AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT BANNER HEALTH

Phoenix, Arizona-based Banner Health, a non-profit health system operating 33 hospitals and several specialized facilities across 6 states, has announced that the emergency room at McKee Medical Center in Loveland, Colorado, has announced plans to close the emergency department at McKee Medical Center on November 5, 2025, due to a decline in patient volume over the past four years. The facility will be re-purposed into a specialty hospital focused on cancer care, under the new name "Banner North Colorado Medical Center – Loveland.

The repurposing will impact 351 employees, including 64 per diem staff members.

According to Alan Qualls, CEO of Banner’s Northern Colorado hospitals, “The transition of Banner McKee is driven by community demand. Our emergency room volumes at McKee have declined each of the last four years, and we’re only using 25% of our hospital beds. The vast majority – 88% – of all surgeries performed there today are outpatient procedures. We are responding to the community and making the best use of this facility by prioritizing convenient and accessible health care services.”

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life, nor promises of a bright future. We see good people being laid off through no fault of their own. Just because something terrible hasn't happened yet doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, at any time, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. While many employees can read the writing on the wall, why do most assume it’s targeted at someone else? Are you now wondering, Am I Next?

AM I NEXT? NO LOVE AT XAI

Palo Alto, California-based xAI, the artificial intelligence company founded by Elon Musk, has announced a major reduction in force among its data annotation team responsible for training its Grok chatbot and helping the software to understand and contextualize questions and answers.

The reduction in force abruptly impacted 500+ employees who will receive compensation through the end of their contracts or until November 30, 2025, whichever comes first

A company spokesperson noted, "After a thorough review of our Human Data efforts, we've decided to accelerate the expansion and prioritization of our specialist AI tutors, while scaling back our focus on general AI tutor roles. This strategic pivot will take effect immediately. As part of this shift in focus, we no longer need most generalist AI tutor positions and your employment with xAI will conclude."

Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life, nor promises of a bright future. We see good people being laid off through no fault of their own. Just because something terrible hasn't happened yet doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, at any time, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. While many employees can read the writing on the wall, why do most assume it’s targeted at someone else? Are you now wondering, Am I Next?