And that includes them, the people doing the layoffs, who are employees as well. And what we often don't realize is that causing the pain to others most often causes pain to us as well. Human group output and productivity can rely a lot on trust, and if that trust is damaged, it can hinder all productivity.

I've seen layoffs with severance so good that the remaining employees felt bad themselves.

Honest question, why would they care? The rancher does not care about the morale of the cattle as they're being led to slaughter.