As Yahoo’s 1,500 or so layoffs are happening today (see the layoffs BB site SAI for wall-to-wall coverage), more such reductions may be coming soon, the company warns. According to a Yahoo (NSDQ: YHOO) spokesperson quoted in the NYT: “There could be additional staff reductions next year…It depends on the decisions we make about prioritization, and on things we can’t predict in the economy.”

SEE ALSO: Yahoo Layoffs To Start Tomorrow

Along with the layoffs, Yahoo is closing offices in Dusseldorf, Hamburg, Stockholm, Amsterdam, Oslo, and Copenhagen, and next year, similar closures will be made at smaller offices in U.S. and Asia, the company said.

And coming soon: more product closures. For now, the layoffs are cost-reduction, but as the spokesperson helpfully explains, the “business prioritization will continue going forward. We are looking at businesses we may put into maintenance mode.” Yahoo in maintenance mode...now that’s a new rallying cry for the incoming CEO, for sure.

Meanwhile, Jerry Yang’s farewell note, sent out today to employees, is here. Likely his last lower-case ditties for a while. ...

Staci adds: Yahoo has changed its severance package for top execs again, according to an SEC filing this afternoon. That would be the same plan changed in February to ward off evil spirits—ie Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT)—by making a change of ownership expensive. Still going through the fine print but the plan, which covers all full-time employees, includes cutting in half the two-year eligibility for severance after a change in control.

Is this prep for a sale? It could be seen that way but it’s primarily the settlement of a shareholder lawsuit. AP: “Yahoo agreed to revisions that will make it more difficult for employees to qualify for severance pay after a takeover. The changes also limit the eligibility period to the first year following a sale and allows the board to scrap the plan entirely — an option that wasn’t available under the original terms.” The agreement excludes the search deal with Microsoft being pushed by some major shareholders.