Sacked AOLers to Receive FREE!!!! Unlimited AOL Dial-up for 45 Days, Unemployment for Six Months
In a story first reported by BoomTown’s Kara Swisher, AOL announced its now semi-annual winter holiday layoffs this morning, disclosing plans to sack about 20% of its total work force–2,000 of its 10,000 global employees. Like those that have preceded it, the latest iteration of the plan to shift AOL’s business model from a subscription-based ISP to an advertising-supported Web company also involves shifting employees from AOL’s offices to the bread line.
In a letter to employees, AOL CEO Randy Falco thanked AOL “colleagues” affected by the reduction, promising to smooth their transition to unemployment with a bit of career counseling and “what we believe are generous severance packages.” Generous, in this case, being a handy euphemism for two months salary and the inescapable financial stress that goes along with it, as well as the always unquantifiable “thanks and respect for their contributions to the company.”
So, 2,000 AOLers felled by normal involuntary attrition. This in addition to the 5,000 that were released into the wild last year. To what end? Says Falco, “So where is this taking AOL? Put simply, my vision for AOL is to build the largest and most sophisticated global advertising network while we grow the size and engagement of our worldwide audience. We’re only a year and a month into our transformation, and the turnaround has been dramatic. We’re now in a position to win as an advertising-supported business. We have a bright future as a company if we can execute on this vision.”
