> I wonder if it will even save them much money this year They also get to account for it differently. The severance payments can be written off as a one-time

> I wonder if it will even save them much money this year They also get to account for it differently. The severance payments can be written off as a one-time charge, so from that perspective they get to take the GAAP benefits this year. Even though the cash flow is ~the same between letting people work for a year and then laying them off with no severance, doing it this way makes the business immediately look better.