Staff Report: Jobs in Photonics

Brent D. Johnson, Senior News Editor

Layoffs and Wall Street notwithstanding, photonics is booming -- and so is the job market.

It's hard to ignore what appears to be contrary evidence. From October to March, our Photonics Market Index fell 21.5 percent, and major photonics companies announced layoffs of nearly 20,000 people.

In late January, Nathan Franks, a senior technical recruiter for JDS Uniphase Corp. in San Jose, Calif., admitted being bewildered by the news reports. "Why the layoffs?" he asked. "We are shipping 24/7. What's happening?"...