Relax, Neatorama authors and NeatoShop workers, you're safe ... for now.
The "contest" to guess who will be fired next was the brainchild of William Ernst, the owner of Iowa-based chain of QC Marts. He has been called "the Boss from Hell" by one of his former workers:
The memo explained the rules of a game in which employees were told to write the name of the next cashier they thought would be fired, along with the date and their own name on a piece of paper. Those who guessed correctly would win a $10 prize.
"And no fair picking Mike Miller from Rockingham," the memo added in boldfaced capital letters. "He was fired at around 11:30 a.m. today for wearing a had [sic] and talking on his cell phone. Good luck!!!!"
ABC News has the (bizarre) story of the memo: Link
It's more of a "we're watching you" note. Usually companies stay pretty quiet when they fire employees - less legal implications.