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My last company called a meeting with all of the most precarious employees and their managers on it for a Friday afternoon, with no meeting subject. Then they canceled the meeting so everyone suspected they were being laid off but no one would answer what was going on. Then actually laid off on Monday morning.
So, if anyone is wondering the method for the highest likelihood for sabotage/workplace violence, it is making people understand they're getting fired, ruin their whole weekend, then fire them on Monday morning.
(I resigned shortly after that.)
“Goldman Sachs is going to sack people this week” >

"Goldman Sacks Thousands" >

Well if they can’t even wait for the weekend, this must be serious. >

Best practices for both the employees being cut and the employees spared is to not fire or layoff anyone on Fridays. M-W preferred. It gives those laid off time when there are resources available to help them and doesn't have survivors worrying all weekend, unable to ask questions wondering if there's going to be more people missing when they return on Monday. 
Best practices for lede on bad news stories is to do shit on Fridays >

Huh...everywhere Ive been has fired/laid off on Fridays because if someone flips out it gives them a couple of days to calm down where nobody is in the office.