IBM CEO: Big Employee Bonuses Coming This Year (If You Kept Your Job)
For over a week now, we've been hearing reports of layoffs at IBM (IBM). The company still isn't saying how many people are being let go: At least 2,800 have been confirmed, high-end estimates say as many as 16,000 employees may get sacked.
But for those IBM employees who have held onto their jobs, good news: IBM CEO Sam Palmisano is telling employees bonuses and salary increases will continue.
Sam's words, via NPR (who's confirmed the memo's authenticity with IBM reps):
I am pleased to announce that we will not only be paying bonuses to IBMers worldwide, based on individual performance, but that they'll be funded from a pool of money nearly the same size as last year's. That's significant in this economy -- and especially so, given the size of the 2007 pool. Further, our salary increase plan will continue, covering about 60 percent of our workforce. As always, increases will go to our highest performers and contributors. We should all feel good about the company's ability to invest in people in these very concrete ways.
