IN THE PRESS

Bosses are using 'silent layoffs' and 'quiet firing' to get rid of employees — Business Insider

Published:
May 26, 2026
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Dan Buckley spoke to Business Insider. "Quiet quitting" came and went. Then there was "grumpy staying." But the latest workplace trends — "silent layoffs" and "quiet firing" — could be the most harmful to date.

  • Silent layoffs — when a company provides staff with severance packages but asks them to keep quiet about the details of their exit
  • Quiet firing — a subtle move by bosses to make a role less appealing, motivating workers to quit rather than forcing them out through layoffs

Dan Buckley discussed why these tactics could backfire on companies, harming morale and potentially creating worse outcomes than transparent, direct approaches. The Business Insider article argues these approaches — while they may seem to avoid public fallout — can ultimately damage trust and company culture more severely than overt redundancies.

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