No. 27

Hughes Division Sold

In a move that could mean further blows to Los Angeles County aerospace jobs, General Motors Corp. sold the defense unit of its subsidiary Hughes Electronics Corp. to Raytheon Co. in a $9.5 billion deal that officially closed Dec. 18.

Analysts are predicting that some or many of the unit’s 15,000-or-so jobs in the county will be eliminated starting this year, as Raytheon consolidates its new holdings with its three existing defense units. At the close of the deal, the Hughes and Raytheon defense units were all joined into a new organization, called Raytheon Systems Co. and based in Washington, D.C.

Analysts say the L.A. operations may be particularly hard-hit in the consolidation because other Raytheon units are in areas of the country where labor and other costs are lower than they are here.

The deal leaves Hughes Electronics as solely a space and telecommunications company that is expected to increase its L.A. County jobs in 1998.