Supervisors and managers were allowed to bully staff with impunity. In some cases, they were also allowed to submit performance reviews that were based solely on supervisors' opinions of staff members, rather than actual job performance, reviews that while not resulting in termination, did prevent members of staff from making even just lateral moves into other departments by destroying reputations. Other posts about the issue of constant downsizing due to frequent acquisitions is also true; a number of staff members were let go, rehired, and then let go again with 2-5 years of being rehired, and the threat of downsizing always loomed. Unrealistic performance expectations were placed on staff members, morale was always low, and both supervisors and management showed little respect for staff members, encouraging a very "us vs. them" atmosphere.