• by Joe Mandese  @mp_joemandese, September 4, 2008

Aegis Group's Carat unit is wrestling with a PR nightmare following reports of a gaff by its human resources department, which inadvertently distributed a confidential memo outlining the media agency's restructuring and a new round of layoffs to its entire workforce. The memo was intended only for senior managers.

News of the HR blunder, first reported in Wednesday's edition of Adage.com, has since made the rounds on the blogosphere and was even picked up in this morning's edition of The Wall Street Journal.

The story follows parent Aegis Group's disclosure last week that Carat's U.S. operations were being restructured due to account losses and weak new business performance.

Speculation of a new, sizeable round of layoffs began circulating last week, but a Carat spokeswoman on Friday told MediaDailyNews there was no truth to those rumors.

As part of the restructuring Carat has confirmed that it would be relocating its offices from its spacious digs at 3 Park Avenue in Manhattan to a downsized location on 42nd street. One staffer griped that the space lacks private offices for senior managers who will be forced to work in an open bullpen.