“Do the ERs not count as part of the layoff at Cisco?”
No, Cisco made a big deal out of carefully Branding this last round of workforce reduction as Choice, this or that. They gave employees the choice of Early Retirement, Leave of Absence, Look around for another job (aka wait and see if you get fired in December), while extorting the choice makers with the threat of a smaller severance package for waiting. So, no. The Early Retirement takers, The Volunteers to leave, even if warned that their job was at risk of being cut, they are all voluntary leavers, not layoffs. Slick going Cisco, sicko leaders once again. Prep for more creative reductions in 2021, it’s never ending.