Earlier last month, reports leaked stating that Dell was preparing to layoff a massive amount of its workers worldwide. The Register, a British technology website, stated on January 9th that Dell would layoff 20% of its U.S.-based sales members, while also relieving 30% of its sales and marketing staff in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. These numbers would mean that over 15,000 Dell employees would lose their job.
However, actual statements have now been released from Dell which show that the rumors wildly exaggerated the situation. Sources close to those at recode.net have divulged information which reports that around 2,000-3,000 workers will be laid off by Dell, much lower than the 15,000 figure being tossed around at the beginning of the year.
Along with this new information from insider sources come a statement from head of communication David Frink, in which he sheds some light on Dell’s decision and future plans:
“We can confirm that a small percentage of Dell’s global team members accepted the company’s offer of a significant severance package associated with a voluntary separation program. We’ve taken steps to optimize our business, streamline operations and improve our efficiency over the past few years. And, like any prudent business, we’ll continue to do so. Meanwhile, we’re hiring in strategic areas of our business, including hardware and software development, engineering and customer coverage worldwide… Reports that we have laid off as many as 15,000 are wildly inaccurate.”
The severance package which Frink mentions consists of 2 months of pay plus an extra week of pay for each year employed by Dell, along with a 75% bonus in pay, COBRA health insurance for 18 more months, and outplacement services.
The layoffs come just months after Michael Dell and an investment firm bought all of Dell’s stock shares, effectively making the company private. The move was made with the mindset that it would allow Dell to focus on long-term, enterprise solutions, following massive declines in PC sales due to the rise of tablets and mobile devices.
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