layoff

layoff
    n 1: the act of laying off an employee or a work force
    

58 Moby Thesaurus words for "layoff":
      abeyance, break, caesura, cashiering, cease-fire, conge,
      cyclical unemployment, day off, deposal, discharge, disemployment,
      dismissal, displacing, drop, drumming out, firing,
      forced separation, furlough, furloughing, hesitation, holiday,
      inoccupation, interim, interlude, intermezzo, intermission,
      intermittence, interruption, interval, lapse, letup, lull,
      normal unemployment, pause, pink slip, recess, remission, removal,
      respite, rest, retirement, seasonal unemployment, stand-down, stay,
      surplusing, suspension, technological unemployment, the ax,
      the boot, the bounce, the gate, the sack, ticket, truce,
      unemployment, unemployment insurance, vacation, walking papers