Dow Corning announced today it will eliminate 800 jobs, or about 8% of its 10,000-member global work force.

It is not known how many jobs will be affected at Dow Corning’s corporate headquarters in Bay County, Michigan.

Dow Corning has about 3,500 employees in Michigan, and about 1,300 working at its Williams Township headquarters and factory in Auburn combined.

The job cuts will occur during the first half of 2009 across the entire company, through a combination of voluntary retirement programs and involuntary separations.

The job cuts will not affect Dow Corning’s majority-owned subsidiary, Hemlock Semiconductor in Saginaw County.

Dow Corning is a multinational corporation headquartered in Midland, Michigan. Dow Corning specializes in silicon and silicone-based technology, offering more than 7,000 products and services. Dow Corning is equally owned by The Dow Chemical Company and Corning (formerly Corning Glass Works).