I currently am at a "great place to work": we all watch out for each other, we do our jobs, we cooperate, and there's very, very little infighting or office politics.
A few months ago, I asked my boss for a week of paid vacation, and he gave it to me. I wound up not getting paid for that week. Two things went wrong: I didn't fill out the official leave request, and my boss didn't tell HR; either one of those would have solved the problem. My boss told HR about it, and I received a supplemental paycheck and apology. We all learned our lesson, and life went on.
Yes, HR apologized for the minor inconvenience to me, but it wasn't their fault--it was mine/my boss's, and it was corrected so easily, no disciplinary action was taken. HR probably makes errors very, very seldom, especially considering the amount of automation they have around here.
Judging by the culture of my workplace, If we did have layoffs, there would probably be severance, and you can bet your ass that HR would not goof up the severance checks.
Having said this, I'd love to know the magnitude of the M$ errors/overpayment [not mentioned in TFA], and if M$ told their employees beforehand how much to expect in severance. Or if someone just said "Oh, we shouldn't have paid them that much! Recall it!"
Is Microsoft related to the RIAA in this matter? What's next? Am I going to get a letter demanding payment for having never worked for Microsoft?