A new study has found that some companies are using layoffs as a sneaky way to get rid of underperforming employees.
More than half of the 600 business leaders surveyed by ResumeBuilder.com He admitted that 75 percent or more of the layoffs at his companies last year were not necessary to cut costs.
The survey, released Tuesday, found that 80 percent of business leaders said their company decided to lay off an employee rather than fire them.
The main reason for disguising layoff decisions behind dismissals was to maintain company morale.
“A disturbing trend is emerging where organizations are reducing their workforce under false pretenses,” said Stacie Haller, senior career advisor at Resume Builder.
More than half of the 600 business leaders admitted that 75 percent or more of the layoffs at their companies last year were not necessary to cut costs.
On social media, some employees have begun recording themselves doing “get ready with me” routines announcing that they think they are about to be fired.
‘This lack of transparency is further highlighted by our survey, which indicates that many companies use redundancies as an excuse to dismiss employees who are not performing well enough.
‘Instead of directly addressing performance issues, these companies cite cost reductions as the reason for layoffs, obscuring their true motives.’
Other reasons leaders said they hid layoffs as severance pay were to avoid wrongful termination lawsuits, having to avoid paying severance pay and hurting employee feelings.
In recent months, companies including John Deere, Microsoft and CNN have announced layoffs.
On social media, some employees have begun recording themselves doing “get ready with me” routines announcing that they think they are about to be fired.
“I’m not 100 percent sure I’m going to be fired, but I’m sure I’m scheduled to meet with a very serious guy who I never meet or should have any reason to meet. Seems a little suspicious to me,” Darby Olson said on TikTok.
‘I work in consulting and I’m a data scientist. I haven’t worked for any clients for quite some time, so I don’t think they’ll need me anymore.
A TikTok user named Grace posted about how she was preparing for a performance review and then found out her teammates were going to be fired.
“I honestly feel like this job has me stuck. It was my first job out of college and I know it’s time to move on, but I was in a really tough spot because this job was remote, with unlimited time off, it was literally so relaxed.”
Olson continued the routine by confirming that she was fired and captioned her post “time for a sexy girl jobless spring.”
Another user named Grace posted about having a similar experience.
“I’m about to start my annual job review, but my teammate who had his review right before me just texted me saying he got laid off,” Grace said.
“I was actually on vacation last week, then I came back and a lot of people had left and it looks like I’m going to join them.”
She then recorded herself being fired by HR and confirmed that she would receive four weeks of severance pay.