Comcast fired 500 employees right before the holidays while simultaneously claiming its new tax cut would help boost employment. Insiders tell The Philadelphia Inquirer that Comcast managers, supervisors, and direct sales people in Chicago, Florida, and other parts of Comcast’s Central region were terminated just ten days before Christmas. These employees were then required to sign a non-disclosure agreement preventing them from talking about the terminations, the report states.

The 500 layoffs in the company's Central region were also accompanied by the firing of 405 employees in Atlanta, according to the Atlanta Business Chronicle.

Comcast also spent the weeks before Christmas making headlines for its claims that the death of net neutrality and its new tax cut would be directly responsible for the company investing $50 billion over a period of five years. Ignored by many outlets was the fact that this is the amount of money Comcast was already on pace to spend regardless of both policies.

"Periodically, we reorganize groups of employees and adjust our sales tactics and talent," Comcast says of the firings. "This change in the Central Division is an example of this practice and occurred in the context of our adding hundreds of frontline and sales employees. All these employees were offered generous severance and an opportunity to apply for other jobs at Comcast."