SALT LAKE CITY -- The Mormon Church, among the five largest religious bodies in the United States, is cutting hundreds of jobs to counter a drop in investment income and a decrease in tithing by members.
Nearly 600 employees of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints accepted voluntary early retirement in mid-December, according to The Associated Press. Forty percent of those positions will not be filled.
The church employs an estimated 33,355 people in Utah, including 18,000 faculty and staff at Brigham Young University.
"Like many large organizations attempting to meet the challenges of a difficult economy, the church is reviewing a number of options to better manager overall costs," church spokesman Dale Bills said.
The Mormon Church has been the fastest-growing religious denomination in the last 10 years, presenting a tremendous challenge to evangelical Christians who consider the group a cult (See story: Study: Conservative churches experience more growth).
The church enlists thousands of young Mormon missionaries to recruit door to door, boosting its U.S. membership by 19.3 percent from 1990 to 4.2 million.
