[Oracle announces hundreds of layoffs] according to three people familiar with the matter, Oracle announced hundreds of layoffs on Thursday and withdrew some of the offer already issued. In addition, the company has cut vacancies in its health care department. Laid-off employees will receive the equivalent of four weeks of severance pay, plus an extra week of severance pay for each year of service and convert the number of days not off into severance pay, two of the people familiar with the matter said. It is reported that Oracle's health division includes medical IT giant Cerner, which was acquired last year for $28 billion. Current and former employees of Cerner recently told the media that Oracle had halted salary increases and promotions in the division and laid off thousands of employees since the acquisition. (Business Insider)