Dell Asks Employees To Take Unpaid Leave

The Round Rock, Texas-based vendor sent a memo to employees asking them to take up to five days off, according to the Austin Business Journal.

A Dell spokesperson confirmed the initiative, which is contained in the fourth quarter to "better position Dell for long-term competitiveness," according to the spokesman.

Asking employees to take unpaid time off is an initiative used in the past by companies looking to trim costs in a slumping economy.

Dell also has instituted a hiring freeze, cut travel budgets and reduced outside services spending on noncritical projects, according to the spokesperson.

In addition to asking employees to take one to five days off in the fourth quarter, Dell is also offering eligible employees a severance package, that the spokesman could not detail.

"We're looking to reduce people costs in a flexible manner that gives employees some choices. It's a targeted cost reduction competitiveness intiative to help control operating expenses," the spokesman said. "It's a global program, depending on local labor laws around the world. We anticipate no disruption in customer service because of this. A big priority in considering this and the voluntary nature of this is to do right by our employees and our customers."