The idea is if you let it out that layoffs are coming (which isn't a real big deal because the employees know it's coming most of the time, no matter how much it is denied; when layoffs are not coming nobody asks) then the best employees will leave ASAP and the worst will stick around until the layoff date.

I haven't seen it myself, really, and post-layoff date your best employees may already be looking anyway (especially in a layoff as the company folds vs a "rightsizing layoff").

> then the best employees will leave ASAP and the worst will stick around until the layoff date.

I see this tossed around and I question it. The people that will leave are the people with who have good intuition about what is going to go down. In other words, the people who are best able to see through corporate politics.

It's not a given that the "best performers" or "top engineers" have a good eye for "corporate political BS". It's not a given they'll see what is going down and run for the exits. Being a "top performer" in some subject matter they are paid for doesn't imply they are "top performers" in playing the game.

It is just as likely that "the dead wood" have an "A game" with corporate politics and they run for the door instead.

I know plenty of extremely good engineers who would not run for the doors in such a situation.

Do you have any advise on how to get that intuition?

I can see mess of certain companies and their bullshit but I was wrong thinking that they would collapse as they still are limping and alive. Granted it is during good times and have to wait to see during such bad times.

I agree, companies are more worried about it than they need to be, but they see it as a risk they don't need to entertain.

Most people continue doing what they were doing the day before unless pushed.

Employers can't have people monkey wrenching as they seethe before getting canned.

I do too but because it helps ME not the company. Why would my company give a shit about me?

...and I prefer honest and open employees who won't immediately stop all work, squeeze whatever they can out of the company and dedicate 100% of their time to finding a new job on my dime.

The citation you're looking for is anyone who's experienced early warning of unspecified lay-offs yet to come, and what that's like.

Wow. "I prefer honest and open employees no matter how many lies we have to tell to get that" is quite the take.

The "slave mindset" is unreal in this thread. They openly defend their sociopath leader's behavior whatever you throw at them.