Technology and Science19 September, 20262 min read
Flock Safety Offers Voluntary Buyouts As Backlash Grows Over License Plate Recognition Technology
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Flock Safety offers a generous voluntary severance package to shrink its 1,500-employee workforce amid backlash. The company expects a significant portion to take the buyouts, with a majority granted.
Buyouts Amid Backlash
Flock Safety announced a voluntary employee separation program on Friday, offering a “generous” severance package to workers who want to leave as backlash grows around its license plate recognition technology. WIRED reported that applications opened Friday and that employees have until October 2 to decide whether to leave, with Flock expecting to grant buyouts to the majority of workers who apply. The company’s internal email shared with WIRED said the program provides “greater agency” and “treats employees with transparency, respect, and choice,” and it described the package as the “most generous” ever offered by the company.
WIRED also reported that without buyouts, Flock “almost certainly would have to lay off some staff,” as the company continues to lose customers amid frustration across the US about its network of license plate readers. WIRED said the severance package includes “several months of health care coverage” and the ability to exercise stock options within two years after separation.
Timeline and Terms
WIRED reported that employees are expected to learn whether their applications were accepted on October 9, and that most accepted employees would leave by October 29. WIRED said the separation program is described in an internal announcement as providing “greater agency” for its workers and “treats employees with transparency, respect, and choice.” TechCrunch reported that Flock expects a significant portion of its 1,500-person workforce to express interest in the buyouts and said it will grant them to the majority of those who are interested.
TechCrunch also said that without buyouts, the company would “almost certainly” need to lay off some staff, framing the buyouts as a way to avoid involuntary cuts. TechCrunch added that Flock CEO Garrett Langley told the All-In podcast that the “biggest damage” caused by the backlash has been to “internal morale.”
Customers Flee, Scrutiny Grows
The buyouts arrive as Flock faces mounting scrutiny over alleged misuse of its technology, including a Washington Post investigation in August that identified 46 cases where police officers were accused of misusing Flock technology. TechCrunch reported that Florida and Texas both said they will stop using the startup’s technology, and it said an anti-surveillance advocacy group identified 90 cities that dropped Flock in August alone. WIRED said the backlash has been fueled by concerns about privacy and misuse tied to Flock’s “sprawling network of license plate readers,” and it reported that officers allegedly abused Flock to track former romantic partners and colleagues.
WIRED also reported that Flock has had many of its contracts either not extended or dropped this year, and that a wave of vandalism targeting its cameras has increased expenses. In the midst of that pressure, WIRED said Flock CEO Garrett Langley told the All-In podcast that “the biggest damage” caused by the backlash against the company had been “internal morale.”