Job portal Glassdoor fires 140 people, CEO doesn't call it layoff

The global layoff wave has seen people getting shut out of systems while they are recruiting other candidates or being called for early morning meetings only to be sacked. Whether disgruntled at being abruptly slashed from the worforce or looking for new opportunities, laid off employees have turned to platforms such as LinkedIn and Glassdoor.

But after LinkedIn had to fire people as part of Microsoft's layoffs, employers review site Glassdoor is also reducing its staff by 15 per cent.

Other cost-cutting efforts failed to deliver

But the platform for professionals to review firms isn't calling the sacking of 140 people a layoff.

As he announced the job cuts through a memo with a heavy heart, Glassdoor CEO Christian Sutherland-Wong wrote that layoffs will be a last resort.

Citing macroeconomic conditions as a reason for the decision, the firm also said that employees in the US who are losing jobs, will be called for a meeting with managers.

Shying away from the ominous word

The CEO added that Glassdoor had to cut jobs after slashing travel costs, programme expenses, and a hiring freeze, failed to bring expenses under control.

But throughout the letter, the job search and employer rating website's chief executive steered clear of calling the action a layoff.

In a similar fashion, Byju's founder Byju Raveendran had called layoffs at the firm an unpaid holiday for employees till the company turns profitable.