The richest man in Europe has come up with a new phrase for dismissal: what does it sound like?

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Bernard Arnault, CEO of fashion conglomerate LVMH, now calls dismissal “promotion outside the company.”

Bernard Arnault, the fifth richest person in the world and Europe's richest billionaire, the chairman of LVMH, the parent company of Louis Vuitton, Dior, Fendi, Tiffany & Co and several other luxury brands, has come up with a new phrase for dismissal. Arnault, 75, claims that those who lose their jobs at his firm are actually “promoted” to better positions at other companies. This is reported by the NY Post.

Arnault made unusual comments during a teleconference dedicated to the financial results of the luxury brands corporation LVMH, using corporate jargon.

According to Fortune, the French billionaire made a mistake while discussing social media company META's decision to lay off underperforming employees. He called it “promotion outside the company.”

The Orwellian turn of phrase was intended to soften Arnault's statement that iconic jewelry house Tiffany's Jewelers was also being downsized.

In another expression of his thoughts, the business magnate called Tiffany’s a “sleeping beauty” and told a shareholders’ meeting that the company would be revived by cutting staff.

According to Fortune, neither Arnault nor LVMH have announced how many employees will be “promoted outside the company” or when the cuts will begin.

“When you’ve been sleeping for 10 years and you’re suddenly asked to be determined and achieve big goals, some people can’t do it,” Arnault said during a press conference on financial results.

The highly paid CEO was apparently inspired by META’s decision earlier this month to cut 5% of its staff in an attempt to get rid of the tech giant’s underperforming employees.

“I’ve decided to raise the bar on performance management and fire underperforming employees more quickly. We usually fire people who don’t meet expectations within a year, but now we’re going to do a more performance-based cut,” META CEO and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg said in a memo.

As a reminder, Bernard Arnault and his family are worth nearly $243 billion. All five of his children work for the LVMH conglomerate, starting at the lowest levels, usually as consultants in stores, and then being given a brand to develop. Arnault himself, nicknamed the “wolf in a cashmere coat,” also sometimes serves customers in boutiques to understand what can be improved.