Section Fourno-layoff policy, announced plans to reduce employment by
10,000, but planned to avoid layoffs through use of a financial
incentive program.^56 Nonetheless, by 1992, the company found
that it had to reduce its employment by 40,000 during that year
alone. IBM tried to become more responsive by shifting to
semiautonomous or free-standing units, a process called
deconstructing. Essentially, IBM tried to obtain some of the
quickness and accountability advantages of rapidly responding
personal computer and workstation manufacturers such as Sun
Microsystems and Dell.^57 By the middle of the 1990s, IBM had
made massive cuts in its workforce. The business press
reported that “The promise of ‘employment security,’ not long
ago a bright hope for curing America’s competitive problems,
has faded.”^58 Job security or income security, however, is still a
goal of major importance to employees.
Downsizing and Layoffs
Before conducting layoffs, there should be a careful analysis of
their effects in the long run, as well as in the short run. For
example, if a company conducts layoffs in response to short-
term losses, it may find that its long-term survivability is
endangered. A short-term problem may only be symptomatic of
a larger problem that is not addressed by layoffs, such as lack
of adaptability. In reality, layoffs, such as in the research and
development area, may place a company in the position of