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HR Automation Glitch Mistakenly Fires CEO and 300 Employees
11 Nov
Summary
- Company mistakenly sent termination emails to CEO and 300 employees
- Emails stated "Your last working day is effective immediately"
- Incident caused panic and confusion across the organization
On November 11th, 2025, a company found itself in the midst of an unusual workplace incident after mistakenly sending termination emails to its CEO and around 300 employees. The alarming messages stated, "Your last working day is effective immediately," sparking panic and confusion across the organization.
The incident, first highlighted in a Reddit post, prompted the company's IT department to quickly intervene and clarify that no one was actually being fired. It was revealed that the HR team had been testing a new offboarding automation tool and had forgotten to switch the system from test mode to live mode, resulting in real employees receiving the unexpected termination notifications.
The company's Slack channel was flooded with messages from shocked employees, with one manager asking, "Should I start packing?" The IT team responded with an all-caps message reassuring staff that "NO ONE IS FIRED. PLEASE DO NOT TURN IN YOUR BADGES."
While the situation was undoubtedly unsettling for those affected, some Reddit users reflected on the absurdity of the incident, with one commenting, "That one guy who just thumbs it up was like, 'damn well ok, guess I'm fired.'" Others shared personal experiences with sudden job losses, highlighting the potential implications of automated termination systems.
