Sure but saying they were "fired without being fired" implies that the company did some kind of covert layoff through underhanded means, e.g. giving people low

Sure but saying they were "fired without being fired" implies that the company did some kind of covert layoff through underhanded means, e.g. giving people low performance reviews in order to get them to quit, or forcing designated WFH employees to come back to the office or be fired, etc.