Its ok – there’s an economic crisis

Acceptable. Understandable. Tolerable.

This describes the current sentiment when you witness company after company slashing jobs and restructuring their businesses in order to ensure survival in these turbulent times. After all business is bad and who has the nerve to question any organisation making any harsh moves? Who questions a company when profits and valuations sink to new lows? Not many. It’s to be expected. Times are tough.

So who’s bluffing? Who is playing their hand knowing that no one is going to call them on it? This week saw the announcement of 1850 jobs slashed from Pacific Brands, one of Australia’s iconic companies. These jobs were slashed with the hopes of improving profits by outsourcing manufacturing to Asia. Acceptable. Understandable. Tolerable. What happens when, just after announcing job cuts, the board are also found to have given themselves considerable pay raises?

This really gets the thinking juices flowing. Is the laying off of staff something that they have wanted to do for a while yet it would have been so socially wrong it could have brought their iconic brands into disrepute? Is the timing of such a move really only that, good timing. Picking a time where ditching almost 2000 Australian jobs is actually considered acceptable. Everyone knows at least one person who has been made redundant, so for the 1850 its simply joining the long growing queue which is now not such a big shock. Was this another good reason for Pacific Brands execs to let go as the timing also minimises chances of an internal backlash?

Pacific Brands have certainly been called on their bluff. Now lets see if the public will stop accepting things on face value and learn to question motives as corporations try to sneak under the “GEC” radar.