Surviving Layoffs, Step by Step

//Disclaimer: All opinions are my own//

This month I’m picking up another sad topic that’s been on everyone’s mind recently: layoffs. Starting in the late 2022, a lot of tech companies have been going through restructuring and cost-cutting exercises. In 2023, it seemed that we read about downsizing and layoffs on nearly weekly basis. More recently, Microsoft made the news when they made redundant a significant number of Activision Blizzard employees, only three months after acquiring the company. Cisco, Amazon, and Apple were just a few other employers that recently made dramatic changes in their business focus which led impacted their employees. Many observers commented how paradoxical these decisions may appear, as the the US economy has been performing well. However, Europe and the UK are experiencing a slow-down, and China’s economy has been stagnating.

We have all experienced the bitter moments when you scroll through the Linkedin feed only to see some of your former colleagues announcing that they are open for work. It makes you feel an unpleasant sting of anxiety – what if you could be next? It is hard to say which is worse – the threat of losing one’s job, or the reality of layoffs. To quote Jack Kelly writing for Forbes, “an increase in low self-esteem, due to the stigma of being out of work and losing your daily routine and identity.” A meta-analysis of about 300 studies around unemployment and well-being has shown that unemployed people are more distressed; less satisfied with their lives, marriages and families; and more likely to report psychological problems than the employed. The long-term impact of layoffs and unemployment is hard to overestimate: for example, for employees with no pre-existing health conditions, the likelihood of developing a health condition increases by 83% in the first 15 to 18 months after a layoff.

What about people who have not (yet) been laid off? The ambiguity may be as detrimental for their wellbeing. It can also generate a vicious circle: you may retreat and pull back on your efforts, which renders you a more likely candidate for cuts, writes Melody Wilding, executive coach. And if you have not been affected by layoffs while your colleagues were let go, it may provoke survivor’s guilt and kill your sense of loyalty to your company. We went through several years of the global pandemic, where we saw the leadership and the culture of many companies become more employee-centric, more focused on wellbeing and work-life balance. And just as we felt things were turning for the better, companies took at 180 degree turn from their previous rhetoric. This has become poignantly evident in the way companies carried out layoffs. In January of 2023, Google has laid off 1200 employees by email. And the email of Microsoft CEO about redundancies in Blizzard got to the actual news on paragraph 11 of the email otherwise packed with management-speak. This is what some described as a “lazy layoff”, when the communication to employees take the backseat to forecasting and spreadsheeting. If there is one thing worse for the employee loyalty than job cuts, then it’s a restructuring done poorly.

What can you do as a leader or HR professional to make layoffs a little less painful?

1. Focus on empathy in your communication.

Yes, you want to justify your decision, but your audience – impacted employees – don’t care as much about the great business vision. What they care about is their livelihood. Some of them may be the sole breadwinners in their family; they may be migrant workers who cannot stay in the country if they are not employed; they may have dependants who require extended medical care; or a mortgage that needs repayment.

Show that you understand this, and that you as an employer will do everything you can to ease the blow.

2. Provide clear roadmap and timelines.

The best way to counter anxiety is to create clarity. Give as much information as you can about the decision making process, steps that the company will undertake, and when the final decision will be made; also, confirm how long employees will have access to their equipment and benefits.

3. Personalise it if you can.

You will have people with very different needs and concerns among impacted employees – understanding them will show that you aim to find the best solution for each worker, even if it means spending more time discussing the options. Some people may be moved across teams and upskilled; others may want to take a break and understand what they want to do next. An open discussion can make the process much easier for you.

4. Provide support and resources.

The HR can assist impacted workers with crafting CVs and preparing for interviews, while managers can connect them with their network, inside and outside the company. Internal hiring and department moves can always be a way to avoid losing some of the most valuable employees.

5. Be mindful of communication outside of the company.

I’m not suggesting keeping layoffs a secret but giving impacted employees time to process the news. They may want to share it with their loved ones at a right time and in the right circumstances. They may need to have a few days to make a plan or get legal advice. Be considerate of their feelings, and let them tell their own story.

And what about people who lost their jobs? My heart goes out to you, you are in the tough spot, and it’s OK to feel angry and betrayed. There are, however, some basics you’ll need to take care of:

1. Paperwork.

It’s good to revise your contract, before you have a meeting with an HR about the details of your termination. If you are asked to sign any document, make sure to read through it and ask questions if some paragraphs or terms are unclear (e.g. a non-disparagement or a non-compete clause). If you can, get a lawyer to read through the documents, or at least do some research online about employer’s obligations. 

2. Work permits and immigration.

If you are a migrant worker, it’s good to know the conditions of your work permit. Don’t trust your “pals who heard something from the HR” – your best source of information is official government website or documentation that explains how long your work permit is valid post termination, and whether you’re eligible for unemployment benefits.

 3. Employee benefits.

Find out, how long they will last after your final day. Also make sure that you or the HR have informed all providers about your change of status, so that you don’t end up paying for some costly insurance from your own pocket.

4. Hardware.

We all know it’s bad practice to have personal stuff on your work laptop. We still often do it. If you can, set up a cloud storage; or make sure to send all personal documents to your personal email account. And remember – whatever pet project you’ve done on your work laptop, may technically belong to your employer (check the IP clause in your work contract).

5. Have your CV ready… before you’re laid off.

The best time to look for a job is when you don’t need it. Interviewing is talking about your job, not doing the job: it’s a very different skill, because it’s all about selling how good you are. Like any skill you want to practice it regularly, so that when you are laid off, you will come into the interviews with prepared story of highlights, achievements, and learnings.  

A little self-care advice: allow yourself time for self-pity and anger. Most layoffs happening now are not about poor performance of employees, they are about optimizing costs and focusing on the most profitable lines of business. It’s usually not your fault that you were made redundant. Don’t be harsh on yourself. And don’t reduce your self-worth to the professional sphere, because every human is more than our job.

 A layoff may feel scary and unfair if it happens to you; and many companies don’t handle it well. However, there are little steps that employers can make to do it right by their people; and things we employees can do to make losing job not as painful.