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reduction in force

reduction in force

1 5.2
A company cuts many jobs at the same time and lets workers go
  • noun
  • Formal
translation icon : reducción de personal
  • Legal causes for teacher non-renewal are typically defined in state statutes and often include incompetency, insubordination, immorality, good cause, reduction in force, and contract violations.
  • reduction in force (RIF)

Examples

  • The more common type challenges a termination action or reduction in force (RIF).

    Academic text (1994)
  • The Eleventh Circuit found that a reduction-in-force is a legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason for terminating an employee.

    Blog text (2)
  • For my part, I believe the Harrison Assessments Talent Solutions could help with a reduction in force, which usually accompanies any such event.

    Blog text (22)
  • We've had a reduction in force in anticipation, and companies bigger than us have already released thousands of employees.

    Blog text (7)
  • The company argued that it terminated Proe during a reduction in force.

    Blog text (2)
  • There is a proper way to issue severance for reduction in force situations, asserts a Chicago employment lawyer.

    Blog text (24)
  • Apparently, in the face of reductions in force and fewer good cases, some felt the need to justify their jobs by making cases when they shouldn't have.

    Academic text (1999)
  • A reliable city source has confirmed that the city has experienced a "reduction in force"—otherwise known as a round of layoffs.

    Blog text (23)
  • Limited resources and declining revenues in higher education during the last decade have caused reductions in force, frozen salary levels, reduced employee benefits, and increased workloads in many institutions.

    Academic text (1991)
  • The company announced a reduction in force that affected over 200 employees due to budget cuts.

Synonyms

layoff
vsreduction in force
145 2.6

An event when a company ends someone's job because of money problems, not because they did a bad job

applies to cutting many employee positions as an organizational action
downsizing
vsreduction in force
  • Jargon
23 4.5

Cutting jobs and costs in a company to save money

focuses on the act of reducing employee numbers rather than financial motive

Antonyms

1.6

An increase in size, number, or importance of something

241 3.3

An increase in size, amount, or range

How Many

downsizing
  • Jargon
23 4.5
reduction in force
  • Formal
1 5.2
layoff
145 2.6

Surface Forms

Morphology

reduction + in + force

The component 'reduction' and the preposition 'in' transparently signal a decrease within some group, but the noun 'force' is commonly known to mean an armed or trained group rather than 'workforce' for many learners. Because the phrase is a formal HR euphemism where 'force' must be understood as 'staff/personnel', the exact meaning 'layoffs' is only partly predictable to a B1 learner and thus not fully transparent.

Etymology

Reduction in force is a polite business phrase that says a company will make its staff smaller. Reduction means making less and force here means the group of workers, like a 'workforce', so the phrase means 'layoffs' or having 'fewer staff' when jobs are cut.