This will certainly be the year of bad news for the corporate sector. After the massive bailout of the banks at the taxpayers’ expense on both sides of “The Pond”, the US Government is attempting a bailout of its ailing car industry, with Ford, General Motors and Chrysler being given a share of a $17.4 billion hand out – again from the taxpayers’ already depleted pockets.
Now it seems even the mighty Microsoft is falling on hard times. OK, I have no great love for Microsoft. IMHO to me it typifies all that is wrong with corporate America. It’s big, greedy, uses unethical business practices to kill its competition, whilst locking its punters into a succession of overpriced, poor quality products. But one has to feel sympathy for the estimated 15,000 employees that are rumoured to be scheduled for the boot later this month. After all, I thought that frequent booting was purely for Microsoft’s hapless customers, not its staff, surely?
Up till now, Microsoft staff have been led to believe everything was all rosy and that Microsoft was really a hip, fab, groovy, going-places sort of company. Seems many really bought into the Microsoft American dream. Now 17% of its staff could be sold down the river. Because, as we in the open source community have known for some time, Micro$haft is in fact a hideous, greedy dinosaur that is just as happy to crap on its own staff as it has done for many years on its customers.
References:-
- Ars Technica
Rumor: Microsoft to lay off 17% of staff on January 15, 2009
http://arstechnica.com/journals/microsoft.ars/2009/01/01/
rumor-microsoft-to-lay-off-17-of-staff-on-january-15-2009 - Blorge
Rumors growing stronger on Microsoft layoffs
http://vista.blorge.com/2009/01/01/rumors-growing-stronger-on-microsoft-layoffs/ - CNet
Microsoft planning big layoffs for January?
http://news.cnet.com/8301-10805_3-10130165-75.html - Fudzilla
Microsoft getting ready to lay off 17% of staff
http://www.fudzilla.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=11142&Itemid=1 - Internet News
Is Microsoft Planning Its First-Ever Layoffs?
http://www.internetnews.com/bus-news/article.php/3793991/
Is+Microsoft+Planning+Its+FirstEver+Layoffs.htm - Search Engine Land
Report: Microsoft To Lay Off 15,000 Workers
http://searchengineland.com/report-microsoft-to-lay-off-15000-workers-15986 - Seattle Times
More speculation on Microsoft layoffs, contractor cuts
http://blog.seattletimes.nwsource.com/techtracks/2008/12/31/
more_speculation_on_microsoft_layoffs_contractor_c.html - Trusted Reviews
Microsoft Planning To Lay Off 17% of Staff
http://www.trustedreviews.com/software/news/2008/12/30/
Microsoft-Planning-To-Lay-Off-17–of-Staff/p1 - Venture Beat
Rumors suggest Microsoft layoffs next month
http://venturebeat.com/2008/12/31/rumors-suggest-microsoft-layoffs-next-month/
Interesting to see if there are any plans to bail out Micro$haft at the taxpayers’ expense, eh? Best wishes, G.
Honk! Honk!