National Semiconductor wants iPods back
updated 03:25 pm EDT, Wed July 5, 2006
Return iPods when fired
After the positive press National Semiconductor received for giving all it's employees 30GB Video iPods to transfer information and as a reward for record earnings, some of the press may have soured. After 35 workers were laid off last week, they were asked to return their iPods as well -- completing the proverbial double whammy. Some employees had given the iPods away as gifts or sold them; however, now that these employees are being told to return the iPods some employees are left in a bad situation. One of the fired employees stated that, "Nothing was ever said about ever having to give it back." The employees who are terminated or otherwise leave the company are to return the iPod or pay fair market value. "They were not a gift." the company's spokeswoman LuAnn Jenkins stated "We were very careful on the language we used talking about it."
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Joined: Jul 2002
how cheap
"We were very careful on the language we used talking about it." Righto. I bet they specifically did not say "these are not gifts they are company property". If they wanted them to stay in the building they should have gotten them engraved. Or heck just give people cheapo firewire drives if all they were used for was 'data transfer'. If they were part of a bonus for a good quarter, then the employees keep them. If the were given a cash bonus instead, would they have to return that?