It just sounds like terrible management to me. They're only saving money long-term. Right now they're forking over a pretty substantial severance package for US employees, so they'll be paying salaries and benefits for a while after they lose that productivity. 12k laid off sounds like an executive problem to me. If you've fucked up a literal golden goose that bad you need to layoff that many people? You suck at managing the company. I'd start with the top down. Probably save more money in the long run.