Planned job cuts soared to an eight-month high in September while new hiring rose only slightly, a report said Tuesday.Via USA Today. That's bad news for Bush as the final Department of Labor employment report before the election is coming out this Friday... Posted by sarah at October 5, 2004 10:18 AM | TrackBackEmployment consulting firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas said employers announced 107,863 layoffs in September, 41% more than in September 2003 and 45% more than in August of this year, when 74,150 were laid off.