The Home Depot recently announced it would lay off 500 workers from the roughly 5,000 employees working at its Atlanta headquarters.

The company blamed the slowing of the overall economy and the hard-hit homebuilding industry in particular.

"We have been pretty clear that we are operating in a tough business environment," said corporate spokesman Ron DeFeo in an online report from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "We see that continuing in 2008."

The report added that Home Depot has made no job cuts at its headquarters since laying off 300 people two years ago. De Feo said the 500 people departing this time will be gone by the end of the week. DeFeo added that the company plans no reductions at any of its 2,200 stores. The company employs approximately 350,000 people.