Corel Corporation, the Ottawa-based software company, said it's cutting 20 jobs in Ottawa. (CBC)

Corel Corporation, the Ottawa-based software company, said Thursday that 20 of the 80 jobs it's cutting globally will come from the Ottawa region.

The company announced that revenues have dropped by 14 per cent from a year ago and that it needs to make the job cuts to stay afloat.

The employees who work for Corel in Ottawa have already taken a pay cut this year to help keep the company going.

A number of Corel workers said they're already formulating backup plans.

"We kind of felt that there might be more when they cut our salaries back a month ago," said Michelle Stephens whose job as an accountant with Corel ends in a week. "We kind of knew something was happening."

Stephens started looking for a new job in November and said she found the search quite difficult. She eventually found a position with the federal government.

"Because we'd kind of been expecting layoffs, I just decided to go somewhere more stable," she said.

Dave Nielsen, who finished up his contract at Corel Thursday, said that even though times are tough, there's still work for Ottawa workers willing to look for it.

"I haven't found it particularly challenging to find contracts in high-tech firms," said Neilson. "I'm from Toronto myself, and I think Ottawa has the luxury of the federal government as a cushion."

It might be a cushion, Stephens said, but there won't be room on it for every laid-off high-tech employee.

"Other people in other departments here in the office might not be as well off," she said.

"The software industry in town is kind of down a little bit, but I have hopes for them at least."