It appears another Y2K trend is making a comeback: laying off workers right before the holidays.

US-based employers announced 71,321 layoffs in November, an analysis from outplacement firm Challenger, Gray, and Christmas found, marking a 24% increase year over year.

Last month marked the third time since 2008 that layoffs in November exceeded 70,000, with the other two times being in 2008 and 2022. According to the firm, layoffs between 1993 and 2000 remained below 70,000 in November, before spiking between 2001 and 2008. The practice of laying off right before the holidays fell out of fashion during the Great Recession, according to Andy Challenger, the firm's chief revenue officer.

Zoom out. US employers have announced more than 1,170,800 layoffs as of November, up 54% from the same period in 2024, when 761,358 cuts were announced. It’s the highest level since 2020, when 2,227,700 cuts were announced through November, and also the sixth time since 1993 that job cuts have surpassed 1.1 million during that period.

For more on the recent uptick in layoffs, keep reading here.—PM

Companies have deepened their investments in benefits programs to support overall employee well-being in recent years.

A recent survey indicates employers have no plans to change their commitment to well-being benefits, with 93% reporting they intend to maintain or expand offerings in this category for 2025, according to Business Group on Health.

But separate research from Johns Hopkins University’s Carey Business School shows workplace well-being has declined to its lowest level since researchers first started tracking in 2019, despite these investments.

Young people and rank-and-file employees have been acutely impacted by this decline, Richard Smith, a professor who leads the school’s Human Capital Development Lab, told HR Brew. And the decline may not be fixed by broad-based benefits alone, but rather deeper consideration for workers’ individual needs, he suggested.

For more on why wellness benefits aren’t improving worker well-being, keep reading here.—CV

In the 1992 film adaptation of David Mamet’s play Glengarry Glen Ross, Alec Baldwin’s character offers the best salesperson not simply the joy of knowing they came top of their class, but a Cadillac Eldorado. Needless to say it motivated the group (probably best to leave it at that), and also established the sales mantra—Always Be Closing (ABC).

These days, incentive compensation is becoming an increasingly popular way to boost performance beyond the individual contributor. Revenue Brew spoke with two firms that specialize in compensation strategies and one sales leader on what’s working when motivating his team.

For more on the dos and don’ts of incentive compensation, keep reading on Revenue Brew.—BS

The feeling of getting a 5/5 on the Brew’s weekly news quiz has been compared to getting a company-wide shout out from your boss. It’s that satisfying.