42:I[185,["/_next/static/chunks/2ys9ev5m3_24i.js","/_next/static/chunks/3pomb8r7ja54n.js","/_next/static/chunks/42spz6paskvb6.js","/_next/static/chunks/178kgr5-cejk9.js","/_next/static/chunks/1v5ewlr55okcj.js","/_next/static/chunks/3jnlvw-emqotx.js"],"SendEmailButton"] 44:I[63625,["/_next/static/chunks/2ys9ev5m3_24i.js","/_next/static/chunks/3pomb8r7ja54n.js","/_next/static/chunks/42spz6paskvb6.js","/_next/static/chunks/178kgr5-cejk9.js","/_next/static/chunks/1v5ewlr55okcj.js","/_next/static/chunks/3jnlvw-emqotx.js"],"AddToLibraryButton"] 45:I[29721,["/_next/static/chunks/2ys9ev5m3_24i.js","/_next/static/chunks/3pomb8r7ja54n.js","/_next/static/chunks/42spz6paskvb6.js","/_next/static/chunks/178kgr5-cejk9.js","/_next/static/chunks/1v5ewlr55okcj.js","/_next/static/chunks/3jnlvw-emqotx.js"],"ShareButton"] 46:I[58016,["/_next/static/chunks/2ys9ev5m3_24i.js","/_next/static/chunks/3pomb8r7ja54n.js","/_next/static/chunks/42spz6paskvb6.js","/_next/static/chunks/178kgr5-cejk9.js","/_next/static/chunks/1v5ewlr55okcj.js","/_next/static/chunks/3jnlvw-emqotx.js"],"ProcessEpisodeButton"] 47:I[45269,["/_next/static/chunks/2ys9ev5m3_24i.js","/_next/static/chunks/3pomb8r7ja54n.js","/_next/static/chunks/42spz6paskvb6.js","/_next/static/chunks/178kgr5-cejk9.js","/_next/static/chunks/1v5ewlr55okcj.js","/_next/static/chunks/3jnlvw-emqotx.js"],"SignupCTA"] 3a:["$","time",null,{"dateTime":"2026-07-12T00:15:56.000Z","children":"July 12, 2026"}] 3b:["$","span",null,{"aria-hidden":true,"children":"·"}] 3c:["$","span",null,{"children":"00:07:37"}] 43:T431,

Big Tech stopped hiding behind euphemisms on AI layoffs this week and flip-flopped on its own story, the labour participation drop finally got a number nobody can explain, and Volkswagen is weighing 100,000 job cuts as its old headcount math stops working.

This week's Paper Cut covers: Microsoft and Xbox naming AI displacement directly in layoff announcements, and the irony of the Fed appointing a CEO who just cut thousands to lead its jobs task force; the 61.5% labour force participation figure and the economist disagreement underneath it; a rare wrongful termination win against Atlassian alongside a troubling Bethesda HR story; and Volkswagen's potential 100,000 job cuts, plus how heat and the World Cup are quietly reviving remote work regardless.

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