I have only worked for one company (in almost 20 years) that shut down for the holidays because business is so slow, it hardly makes sense to turn on the lights. Of course, that was during the good times. These changes all point in the direction of lean times in 2009.
Many Silicon Valley companies have traditionally shut down over the holidays when business is slow and employees are on vacation. Some are now extending those closures, or revisiting a practice long since eliminated, in a bid to save money in a rocky economy.
Workers are usually either given paid days off or are asked to take unused vacation days.
Hewlett-Packard Co., for example, now plans to close its offices for two weeks instead of one. Apple Inc. and Adobe Systems Inc. are also asking employees to take time off.
Cisco's closure begins Dec. 29 and lasts through Jan. 2. The company describes it as a 4-day shutdown because it includes New Year's Day, a federal holiday when Cisco offices would be closed anyway.
