I dont think the management cared about the money the company saved; top level management rarely preoccupies itself with such pedestrian matters. It was about s

I dont think the management cared about the money the company saved; top level management rarely preoccupies itself with such pedestrian matters. It was about sending a message and reasserting authority. Management 101 in large, deep pocketed orgs. Btw, disciplinary firing of employees on leave is of course pretty rare but happens - also in those countries that make it difficult to fire salaried staff. People do stupid things, like steal, download thousands of documents, or write stupid emails.