They expected some amount of employees to leave(not sure it was 1/3 though). This was during a time when the country was in the midst of some very contentious social issues. I believe the public communique was perhaps to provide precedent for other companies who wanted to make the same move, but were not courageous enough to do so on their own.
I also heard that they offered very generous severance packages(6 months salary), so there may have been other factors contributing to the exodus.
I also heard that they offered very generous severance packages(6 months salary), so there may have been other factors contributing to the exodus.