skeleton staff
Smallest possible workforce
A skeleton staff is the minimum number of employees needed to keep an organization running during off-hours, holidays, or emergencies.
The image is of a body stripped to its bones—only the essential structure remains: The office runs on a skeleton staff between Christmas and New Year's.
Also called a skeleton crew.
Vertebral column, or courage
- crewWorking team aboard
- core teamCentral group of contributors
- headcountTotal of individuals present
- personnelWorkers at an organization
understaffed · shorthanded · round-the-clock · on-call · duty roster · watch · running light · bare minimum
Reducing workforce or scale
- cutbacksReductions in spending
- hiring freezeSuspension of new employment
- layoffsMass job eliminations
- budget cutsPlanned spending reductions
cost-cutting · workforce reduction · restructuring · redundancies · belt-tightening · attrition · headcount reduction · furlough
backbone
Vertebral column, or courage
personnel · understaffed · shorthanded · round-the-clock · on-call · duty roster · watch · running light · bare minimum · essential workers
downsizing
Reducing workforce or scale
- cutbacksReductions in spending
- hiring freezeSuspension of new employment
- layoffsMass job eliminations
budget cuts · cost-cutting · workforce reduction · restructuring · redundancies · belt-tightening · attrition · headcount reduction · furlough · retrenchment