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Talking Shop: Former Xerox CIO says voluntary layoffs can leave company vulnerable

This article hints at some unwise tactics.

"Lay off the youngest or oldest": I thought that this was illegal. Age is certainly a very poor indicator of peoples' worth to the organization.

"Refuse redundancy to trained people": There is no point in forcing people to stay. They will soon leave such a poor employer, or just lose their motivation.

"Scheme secretly with small groups": This will leave a fatal legacy of suspicion.

"Wall off vital skill sets": Sounds like a good hint for this group to set up their own company and sell their vital skills at a higher price.

There seems to be a great myth amongst some "executives" that everyone else is incapable of adapting or learning.

In one organization, the 60 year old director decreed that everyone else over 35 was "past it" and must be layed off!

Another company retained my services because they had recently layed off large numbers of staff as part of a "re-skilling" exercise and had no-one left capable of completing their contracts. Their HR "executive" was hardly out of college and certainly knew very little of their business (or any business). Subsequently, customers lost confidence and the company folded.

Obviously organizations grow and decline, but no organization can thrive unless the staff feel respected and valued. Dictatorial management styles soon fail. (Although sometimes only after the dictator has moved on and left others to pick up the pieces.)

On one of Dr. Phil's shows he had a person that was mean to wait staff in resturants. He asked " Why would you want to anger the people that serve your food?" So why would management want to anger the workers that would prefer a layoff by keeping them on? Its like being chained to the job. Some folks may want to move but don't want a "I quit" on their resume. Indidvidual consultations? Looks like favoritism to me. Keep general rule that is equal to everyone and possably a multiplier for months with the company. Nobody likes to think that the next person got a better deal particularly if favors are exchanged. Even Bill Clinton accepted "favors".