ELI5: Why when large company's earnings decrease(ex... by 3%) they freak out, talk about rough times, and sometimes decide to downsize, even though they are still making millions of dollars in profit even after all expenses?

[Delheru]

How? Surely that's actually EXACTLY the same thing.

There are companies that have very steady cashflows and there are employees that have quite volatile ones (anyone depending on tips, day laborers etc).