Flock reportedly tries to shrink workforce with employee buyouts

据报道，Flock 试图通过员工买断计划缩减规模

Embattled surveillance technology company Flock Safety unveiled a “generous” severance package for voluntary employee departures on Friday, according to a report in Wired. 据《连线》（Wired）杂志报道，陷入困境的监控技术公司 Flock Safety 周五公布了一项针对自愿离职员工的“慷慨”遣散方案。

Flock reportedly expects a significant portion of its 1,500-person workforce to express interest in the buyouts, and said it will grant them to a majority of those who are interested. The company’s internal announcement described these packages as the “most generous” it has ever offered. 据报道，Flock 预计其 1500 名员工中会有相当一部分人对买断计划感兴趣，并表示将批准大多数有意向者的申请。公司内部公告称，这些方案是其有史以来提供的“最慷慨”的补偿。

By letting employees depart voluntarily, Flock can say goodbye to team members demoralized by the ongoing backlash over the company’s license plate recognition technology. Wired also reports that without buyouts, the company would “almost certainly” need to lay off some staff. 通过让员工自愿离职，Flock 可以遣散那些因公司车牌识别技术引发的持续抵制而士气低落的团队成员。《连线》还报道称，如果没有买断计划，该公司“几乎肯定”需要裁减部分员工。

In August, The Washington Post identified 46 cases where police officers have been accused of misusing Flock technology, including cases where they allegedly stalked their wives, girlfriends, or exes. Florida and Texas both said they will stop using the startup’s technology, and an anti-surveillance advocacy group identified 90 cities that dropped Flock in August alone — a fourfold increase from the previous month. 今年 8 月，《华盛顿邮报》披露了 46 起警察被指控滥用 Flock 技术的案件，其中包括涉嫌跟踪妻子、女友或前任的案例。佛罗里达州和德克萨斯州均表示将停止使用该初创公司的技术。一个反监控倡导组织指出，仅在 8 月份就有 90 个城市弃用了 Flock，这一数字是上个月的四倍。

TechCrunch has reached out to Flock for comment. The startup’s CEO Garrett Langley recently told the All-In podcast that the “biggest damage” caused by the backlash has been to “internal morale.” TechCrunch 已联系 Flock 请求置评。该初创公司首席执行官 Garrett Langley 最近在《All-In》播客中表示，此次抵制活动造成的“最大损害”是对“内部士气”的打击。