Why even bother with such a small layoff? Is there a reason to not just dial up your attrition for a while?
In theory, a small layoff can target the least productive employees.
But this remains true after a layoff and the layoff often acts a motivator for your best employees to start looking even if they weren't previously.
Usually they aren't thinking "well, glad I survived that layoff and now my job is safe forever", they are thinking "huh, is this a sinking ship? Maybe I should look around and see what else is out there..."
...speaking as someone that has been at several companies during layoffs...
Granted, in that context, you'd be laying off 5% every two-ish years until industry trends changed direction.
Large companies model attrition in their financials, and those assumptions start to break when macro conditions around the job market shift like that.