| DOWNSIZING | Reducing the operating costs of a company by reducing the number of people it employs |
| RAZEE | From French for "shaved close", a historical type of ship, cut down by reducing the number of decks (5) |
| TWO | Number of people it takes to tango or to ride a tandem (3) |
| BUYOUT | Purchase of a company by staff (3,3) |
| MICHAELLYNAGH | Wallaby legend who advocates reducing the number of Australian Super Rugby teams (7,6) |
| CHOKE | Device in the carburettor of a petrol engine that enriches the petrol-air mixture by reducing the air supply |
| LOSS | The amount by which the costs of a business operation exceed its revenue (4) |
| MARKINGDOWN | Damning the work savagely by reducing the grade (7,4) |
| FOOTFALL | The number of people entering a shop or shopping area at a given time (8) |
| ACCRUE | Build up a ship's company, by the sound of it |
| OPENWINDOW | It's a boon for a thief to unlock most of the operating system (4,6) |
| EIGHTBULBJOKE | Gag about how many people it takes to change the devices of a whole chandelier, maybe? |
| THREE | "Cup of tea" or "you and me" in bingo lingo; or, the number of people said to equate to a crowd (5) |
| MANPOWER | Fellow might have the number of people available for a job |
| UNEMPLOYMENT | My! Opulent men reassessed the number of people out of work (12) |
| GATE | The number of people who pay to enter a sports ground for an event (4) |
| HOSTILETAKEOVER | Acquisition of one company by another when the original management is opposed to it (7,8) |
| PATHOS | It's a tragedy the way the operating system's put together (6) |
| UPKEEP | Costs of a castle in the sky? (6) |
| EXPENSES | The costs of a pen, seen flying over Essex? (8) |
