layoff
Other forms: layoffs
When a company informs a group of workers that their employment is terminated, it's called a layoff. In most cases, layoffs are a way for a business to save money.
When the word layoff was coined in the 1880s, it meant "rest or relaxation." It evolved to be defined as "periodic respite from work," like a break for seasonal workers, and then "temporary release from employment." Employers began using it as a euphemism for "permanently firing people," a way to make it sound less harsh. Today when someone mentions layoffs, they're not temporary, unless they're specifically described that way.
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the act of laying off an employee or a work force
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Vocabulary lists containing layoff
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