I was notified today. People should not be surprised because they are like most other companies and really focused on AI efficiencies.
It never hurts to keep your resume updated and casually look even if not affected. It usually takes a couple of months to start getting good calls about jobs. Be hopeful that you will not be but start preparing as if you will.be one day.
@bwe it's about time for another layoff wave. Any indication on what departments are next?
HR representatives are trained negotiators, and the initial layoff package is simply their opening offer. Most employees sign right away out of embarrassment or shock, but it is critical to treat this purely as a business transaction. If needed, consult an employment lawyer to review your terms before signing anything. If you are a protected class including certain departmental demographics, then you may have additional leverage.
Core Areas You Can NegotiateAccrued PTO & Sick Time (Earned Time):
PTO/Vacation: Ensure all accrued, unused vacation time is paid out in full. While required by law in many jurisdictions, confirm it is explicitly itemized and calculated separately from severance.
Unused Sick Time: Sick time payout is rarely legally required, but you can request that accrued sick leave be cashed out or folded into your total payout as a goodwill gesture.
Severance Pay: Request additional weeks or months of base pay anchored to your tenure, past contributions, or industry standards.
Healthcare Continuity: Ask the company to cover full COBRA premiums or maintain your active health coverage for a set duration.
Restrictive Covenants: If non-compete or non-solicit clauses restrict your ability to find work quickly, request that they be waived or narrowed—or ask for higher severance to offset the limitation.
Equity & Bonuses: Negotiate accelerated vesting for upcoming equity tranches or a prorated payout of your annual bonus.
Transition Support: Request company-funded outplacement or career coaching services.
Standard Counteroffer Framework:
"Thank you for sending over the agreement. I value my contributions to [Company] and want to ensure this transition is handled fairly for both sides. Given my track record—including [1–2 key achievements]—I’d like to request the following adjustments before signing:Full payout of all [X] accrued PTO hours and [Y] unused sick days upon termination.An adjustment in severance pay from [X weeks] to [Y weeks].Company-paid COBRA coverage through [Date].If we can update the agreement to reflect these revised terms, I am prepared to sign the release promptly."
Best Practices
Document Everything: Keep all communications in writing via email for a clear record.
Check Local Labor Laws: Rules around mandatory PTO and sick time payouts vary significantly by state/region.
Use Speed as Leverage: Offering a quick turnaround on signing the general release once terms are updated gives HR a strong incentive to accept your request.
@5xs Small downsizings are the norm now across the US to keep it below the radar. I knew when they told us to document our work by day, week, etc it was just a matter of time. Hopefully people are aware enough to be updating their resumes because finding another position takes time.
Impacts are coming - they have somewhat quietly been sending jobs to Costa Rica, where the cost savings is around 55% of having employees there vs in St Louis, etc - US based. Now the latest was on Friday, a business unit has to document what they do and how they do it, including producing self videos of their jobs as they do it. Of course, that is smart - how do you get a new workforce trained without telling the current employee you are training your replacement? By producing training videos of course. Missouri does have to follow the federal WARN act requirements, but they can bypass that legality by laying off less than 50 people at a time. The Missouri WARN ACT filing data base is located at https://jobs.mo.gov/warn/2026
It is wise to check it frequently, because a report with MO might be filed ahead of the 60 day notice required to employees if 50 or more are impacted. But as I said, they can bypass this legality by doing it in small "dribbles" in order to prevent a panic among existing employees.
@35r When was STL notified? Last day?
It's sad to hear about those who were laid off. Not sure about the other locations but STL was hit pretty hard.