STEVE RINGMAN/THE SEATTLE TIMES

Howard Schultz at his headquarters office south of Seattle.

That's soothing news for Seattle, where job cuts at big employers including Microsoft and Boeing have pummeled an area initially cushioned from this recession.

Altogether, Starbucks has slashed about 18,400 U.S. jobs and begun closing 977 stores worldwide. Many store workers found jobs at other Starbucks, but their previous jobs are no longer part of the economy, which hurts at a time when more than 800 people go for one water meter reading job in Tacoma.

Here's the math:

February 2008: Cut 600 jobs through attrition and layoffs, many at Seattle headquarters.

June 2008: Laid off about 100 store-development workers after throwing the brakes on U.S. expansion.

July 2008: Cut another 1,000 support jobs, including 180 in Seattle. Began eliminating 12,000 jobs at 616 underperforming U.S. stores that are closing. Closed 61 stores in Australia (685 jobs lost there).

January 2009: Laid off 700 more people, including about 350 in Seattle. Added 300 more stores to the close list, 200 of them in the U.S. with about 4,000 employees.