350 More Employees at Smith Tool Are Laid Off

Smith International Inc. passed out pink slips to 350 employees at its Irvine-based tool division Friday, the third time this year that employees of Smith Tool have been cut from the payroll.

Friday’s round of layoffs brings to more than 1,100 the number of people who have been dropped from Smith Tool’s employee roster during 1985. A spokeswoman for Newport Beach-based Smith International said Friday the cut-backs at the company’s largest division included both hourly and salaried employees.

Although Smith officials cite competitive reasons for their refusal to disclose the number of employees at the company’s individual divisions, Smith’s world-wide employment base has slipped to 7,800 from about 8,900 workers at the beginning of 1985.

Smith, which lost $8.2 million on revenues of $175.4 million during the third quarter ended September 30, blamed declining oil rig activity for the continuing layoffs at Smith Tool, which manufactures oil drill bits.