Announced job cuts in April by employers are higher than last year. Figures released this morning by Chicago-based Challenger, Gray & Christmas indicate planned firings increased eleven-percent to 40-thousand-559 from April 2011. The report says education is the front-runner in handing out pink slips, with just over nine-thousand layoffs planned in April. Still, the pace of reductions in education so far this year is down 32-percent compared to the same time last year. Company CEO John Challenger says, quote, "We do not foresee a sudden upsurge in downsizing activity." He adds that the monthly totals remain well below levels that would signal a reversal in the recovery.