TECHNOLOGY - March 20, 1996

Cirrus to Lay Off 455: The move to fire about 13% of its work force comes as orders for its computer chips have tumbled. The Fremont, Calif.-based chip maker reiterated that it will post a loss for the fiscal fourth quarter ending March 31, calling the deficit substantial but declining to provide an estimate. It said sales will be less than $296 million in the quarter. Cirrus Logic Inc., which makes specialty chips used in personal computers, modems and disk drives, was hit hard during the holiday season by a slowdown in demand for PCs. Job cuts from its work force of 3,500 will include full-time and temporary employees. The company also expects to trim expenses by reducing bonuses. Cirrus had hired 1,000 people in the last year in expectation of increased sales.