Here’s one Microsoft computer glitch that’s sure to make some of their former workers feel like they’ve caught a virus.
A month after launching a litany of layoffs, Microsoft admitted today that it screwed up – and is now asking some laid-off employees for a portion of their severance packages back after an accounting error caused the software maker to pay them too much.
The Redmond, Wash.-based software maker would not say how many of the 1,400 workers let go a few weeks ago were overpaid – or by how much.
The company is asking its former workers for reimbursement – in the form of a check or money order – within the next two weeks, according to a redacted letter posted over the weekend by the technology blog TechCrunch.
“An inadvertent administrative error occurred that resulted in an overpayment in severance pay by Microsoft,” read the letter dated Feb. 18. “We ask that you repay the overpayment and sincerely apologize for any inconvenience to you.”
Microsoft later confirmed the letter’s authenticity.
With the sagging economy cutting into sales of Microsoft’s popular Office and Windows software, the company announced at the start of this year that it would let go 5,000 of its 94,000 employees – the only mass layoff in its 34-year history. The company has said severance would be calculated by length of service and position in the company.