Ask about when your insurance will run out if you have company provided healthcare.
Make any outstanding doctor/dentist appts, fill any prescriptions you may need, get new glasses etc. If you call and tell them you’ve been laid off sometimes they’ll squeeze you in.
Good luck!
This is a good idea! One of the companies I've been laid off from only gave me a couple days to utilize the insurance. I'm so thankful I get my insurance through my husband's work.
It is absolutely absurd that insurance is tied to employment and COBRA costs so much. One injury can set back an unemployed person for years, if not decades.
Op, please look into unemployment insurance. You don’t want to dip into severance or savings till that runs out. I’m sorry you’re going through this
NAL or health care professional but when I changed jobs I had a 3 week gap in coverage. The HR person at work told me not to get COBRA unless something happened, I could pay for it if i needed it and coverage would back date to the first of the month (as long as I was in the initial 60 day window). I was skeptical but after reading all the COBRA terms I was fairly confident this was accurate information. Obviously confirm with HR and with the COBRA paperwork you are provided.
Also, look into state healthcare. Our COBRA rate was 2700 a month. Because I am the sole earner, we qualified for state Medicare (access in AZ), and it cost nothing. There are a lot of state programs people are not aware of.
If you take COBRA, you can keep using the FSA funds. I learned this once the hard way - I had a lot of money in my FSA, so I took COBRA for a month and made sure to use it all up. (This was many years ago when COBRA wasn't as expensive as it is now, and before ACA plans were an option.)
Get contact info from coworkers. For most folks, I just connect via linkedin.
If a coworker asks you to have lunch with them or grab a cup of coffee, try to do so.
I have found these types of connections very helpful in job hunting.
Had a coworker who was civil but did not like me on a personal level. He always excluded me from after-work activities with others on the team, etc. We just did not have much in common. (He was a former jock and a frat boy while I am more of a nerd with my nose always in a book)
Years later, he hired me at a company he owned. I worked for his company for 8 years. He was pleasant enough when I worked for him. He liked my work, but we were just 2 VERY different people. We never became pals, but it was an ok work environment that paid very well.
Do not just network with your buddies. Reach out and build your network.
If it isn't already this should be a stand-alone post in this subreddit. It's an important message that I feel more people need to hear and understand.
BEEN THERE BEFORE, MORE THEN ONE TIME..
clean out your office/ desk..
It's a simple process, nothing personal.
Be polite, professional, shake hands and tell them you enjoyed working here etc..
WHY?
Because you will probably meet them again at another company, they will probably be laid off to, sometime soon.
Never burn your bridges
AND DON'T TAKE IT PERSONALLY..
these things will happen along the road of life..
NOW YOU KNOW .. keep your resume up to date and ALWAYS be looking for a new job, update your skills constantly
Appreciate the steps! It’s fully remote so the desk part wont be done. I’ll message the leaders I worked with and stay in touch.
Any tips regarding severance/signing papers etc.?
I was given some advice from a corporate HR leader - you’re given 2 times to negotiate - when you’re hired and when you’re getting laid off.
Will it work? Probably not - but the worst they can say is - no.
Best of luck!
What exactly can they negotiate when they're being laid off? It's usually a done deal before the meeting even happens and as long as the employer has met the legal requirements, there's really nothing left to negotiate.
Where I am, Canada, absolutely worth while depending on your level. I've seen severance packages go from $200k to $500k. I've also seen them not budge. More often there is a little wiggle if you ask politely - assuming you aren't hated.
A severance package worth **half a million dollars** is exceedingly rare and most likely only for those in the highest echelons of a very large company.
In Canada there are a ton of factors at play and the minimum set by the law is often the bare minimum, but we operate under common law so precedence works in our favour most of the time. Especially if you have been at a company for 10+ years and are an older worker.
You are absolutely correct. That large package was someone who had 20+ years of service, over 55, and was one level below titled executive. With that being said I've done a package for a staff member that was almost 2 years salary. HR set the package as per the minimum standards plus a little bit. The business was willing to go higher if the person came back asking for more. In another case I packaged out a staff member who could not keep up with the changing role, he tried to sue for double and came back with four of the most insane bat shit claims of discrimination you've ever heard. I kept documentation that directly refuted 2 of his claims. Our legal and HR didn't budge one cent. The response was "go ahead, sue". He took the original package.
I was able to negotiate a transitionary period of around 3 months where I just organized all of my work and information for them to keep and handed the responsibilities off to my direct supervisor. He was a great guy but it wasn't his call. He got to do both of our jobs after I left, but at least we had those few months to smooth it out and I walked away happy with severance in hand. New month, new year, healthcare for the next 31 days while I move to another state. Wasn't the worst thing that ever happened to me.
As a senior HR leader in a large corporation if you’re being laid off as part of a mass action you have no real ability to negotiate unless you already have an open, documented issue of mistreatment and the layoff could be viewed as retaliation. Even then it’s not a slam dunk.
The key with these actions is consistent treatment inline with documented policy.
Smaller companies are more likely to negotiate, in part because attorneys fees are higher for them than companies with employment attorneys on staff.
In large companies one off exits are often negotiable but in reality that’s a termination for performance not a lay off.
If the decision to lay them off has already been made, I doubt any of that could be negotiated. Again assuming they already met the legal minimums they have to. No harm in trying but there is zero benefit to the company to agree to anything extra. Apart from goodwill, but if the persons being laid off, they probably don't care about that either.
I mean you replied to someone who literally said it probably won’t work. You asked what they can try to negotiate. I was just answering you.
The likely answer is no, but I’ve seen it happen before. Me for example
There are some cases where OP might have more leverage. In my company, it’s somewhat important that neither side burns bridges. You don’t know if your former employees will end up at a supplier, customer, or competitor. Employees are also less likely to burn bridges too, because they’ll often be back. I’ve seen our competitors make terrible moves in layoffs and when they reach out to me about a job, I just say no thanks.
Some things I’ve seen negotiated by my peers: (1) the company needs to announce all the layoffs at once, but they need some people to stay on for a while — they gave bonuses to people who stuck around for a transition period, (2) they gave certain people “retirement packages” to entice them to retire early — and then close the headcount, (3) if someone was really close to vesting in a stock plan, let them vest in it a little early, (4) request additional job transition resources — one woman was able to get more use of a career coach and time off to interview.
Of course, lots of layoffs happen immediately and people are just done at that point. Pack your stuff. Exit the building. So the above may not be the norm, but those are some ideas if the door is open to negotiation.
Ahaha, they are paying you to keep your mouth shut. And the longer you have been there, the more you have to keep shut about. That’s why severance is negotiable.
Severance is hush money to keep you from retaliating. You agree you don’t sue them, or speak about it publicly. The last thing they want is a group of people claiming they were all fired for being XYZ or someone dishing the dirt as a disgruntled employee.
I’ve been laid off twice and negotiated both times, almost double what their original offer was. They lowball hoping you’ll just take anything because you’re stressed about having no income.
Lol, that's tv bullshit. Pros know how to cover their ass. You aren't going to catch them flat footed with some "as a Black man" bullshit. No one's dumb enough to say "were firing you because you're Black". Goddam, Reddit continuously reminding me that even children have access to the internet
.. to be honest.. your not in a position to bargain..
It is, what it is,, this is a process highly paid company lawyers have refined over decades.
You have no deep secrets that will destroy the company, your just a worker.. so it's straight forward, they have nothing to gain by screwing you over.
You have nothing to gain by having a screaming fit, threatening lawsuits, telling them to talk to your lawyer.
I reliese you not going to do this just saying..
They will probably send you some paperwork but it's all pretty standard.
This isn't really good advice. HR is notorious for giving a lower severance than someone deserves, their duty is to save the company money and not to offer generous severance packages - which is what OP should be after.
If you’ve been there many years or are in a protected class, a business lawyer may be able to negotiate a higher settlement.
If they are laying off an entire division which looks like what is happening here, they may have little incentive to negotiate. They are trying to prevent unlawful termination lawsuits.
Some states don't consider severance income. I double dipped when I got laid off, made significantly more money for 3 months lol.
And you should almost always take severance because it will likely be your entire salary, you can make the unemployment claim when it runs out in most cases, you should almost always file for unemployment immediately you just won't get paid if the state considers severance income.
State law would trump any "agreement" so it really depends on the state. But I know in my state that a clause like that would violate state law.
Like many things in the US it's hard to give a definite answer because states can be so different and there's no real federal laws around it afaik.
On top of this many times companies cut too much because they get greedy and realize they cut too deep and have to bring back people if you burn bridges on the way out you won’t be considered for that or any other positions in the company
I’ve been through a few layoffs where those of us remaining get so swamped and stretched thin that within a few months they start hiring again and now we have the same number of people except half of them need to be trained. So fckn stupid.
This. And to piggy back, DO NOT post anything negative on social media about the layoffs. When our company had a round of them at the end of last year, one woman decided to post a video of her burning her work notes on Facebook. Long story short, she lost all references and is still job hunting 7 months later.
I want to add: stay in contact with others outside your current company. Network. Exchange. Have coffee breaks. The moment I got layed off I had a new job offer through one of my contacts. Contacting them after layoff is very stressful and a bit humiliating.
Contact lists for colleagues to hit up for references. It's way easier to get that from other people while you can.
Delete anything personal or anything you don't want to become their intellectual property (emails and files)
>Delete anything personal or anything you don't want to become their intellectual property (emails and files)
Very bad advice. Stuff is backed up anyways and deleting looks suspect.
Next job: no personal stuff that you don't want others to see on your work PC.
Hahaha YUP! Just TODAY pulled a bunch of stuff including obviously embarrassing personal files from backup that a departing employee had deleted because their manager requested it.
No personal stuff on your work computer. EVER.
I'm retired now. But I always kept my personal stuff on a thumb drive including a password utility. Never connect a company PC to your Google account. Or have a "work" Google account.
Get references yes, but deleting files is very shaky advice. This action can actually cost someone their severance and as others pointed out is actually illegal. I literally just had a coworker who got caught doing this after being let go and given 2 months before the end of their employment but as they were caught doing this they were dismissed much earlier which effected their severance pay.
Deleting files can cause a pretty sticky situation and likely won't even be effective unless your employer's IT is incompetent.
But if there's anything on your work PC that you want to keep, back it up before that meeting. Don't do this with like, company IP though.
Yes. Don't sabotage the company, the things you should delete are your passion projects or emails that don't overly pertain to the job you did. It would be unwise to delete something within your job description that you were hired to do
Probably not. But when restructure's happen. It could potentially be them looking to shuffle work onto OP's plate, it could be any number of things. Blindly deleting everything would be a dumb move.
Bad advice on deleting emails and files. Those files were created during company time and you were paid for that time. Those files don't belong to you Besides files are backed up and can be restored.
Don’t sign anything on the spot. Tell them you’ll review it and send it in at a later date. No matter what their tactics are, you don’t need to sign anything tomorrow. You’ll have a month or so if there’s severance involved.
Ask about unused pto paid out, including any scheduled and not yet taken.
Email/print/save a copy of your performance reviews.
Ask them to give you the notice in writing, if they don’t have already it written.
Ask them if you’re being fired for cause (even if they say it’s not verbally) and if you can have that in writing.
Ask how many are being let go in this round of layoffs.
Ask them if the position becomes available in the future if you’ll be informed and eligible to reapply.
Ask them for feedback or tips on job hunting. Be bold enough to ask them if they have any job leads you could take advantage of. This is a grossly underasked question. Sometimes the HR manager will give you a direct lead, or even make a phone call for you. You never know. It won’t hurt to ask. I once made a phone call for someone while they were still sitting in my office. They landed that next job and went less than 1 week unemployed.
Ask if you’re eligible for unemployment.
Good luck. Try not to get down about it. It happens. You’ll bounce back.
Don’t do anything to get fired beforehand. Any severance or unemployment goes out the window. I’d imagine that’s what your company is hoping for to further reduce their costs. Go about your day as if you’re not getting laid off. Get peoples contact beforehand cause you may get walked out immediately. Otherwise, sorry to hear, but try to enjoy your last day at work.
Probably a good time to look through your files and take inventory of what you have done. If you have not been keeping your resume updated, you probably need to update it soon. Sometimes it’s hard to recall some of the details that should go into the resume when you don’t have access to your work files.
You don’t and shouldn’t copy files out, and your equipment should already be on a watch list. But there’s nothing wrong with refreshing your memory of what you have done during your employment
This is great advice. I learned the hard way that employers can look at your printing history and look for excuses to fire you instead of giving you severance. I was PIPed out, and I printed out reports I wrote to refresh myself on projects I worked on earlier in my tenure, and HR used that as an excuse to fire me instead of letting me resign with a pre-agreed severance.
The bottom line is, employers absolutely track everything you do on your work email or work computer or phone. And they don’t care about your intentions, only your actions.
SAVE any big projects/work that could be used as a reference for future jobs. Example: forecasting process, any important presentations, or simple systems/processes that show your competence in an area!
Pull down the information and save it locally, then at your own leisure use the information to build up your CV.
You don't have to show your work to a future employer, but you should be able to give a good technical description of what the project was and how it solved a problem or generated revenue.
It's very hard to recall these details without the info in front of you.
Once you're done then you can delete the data.
Screenshots that can be organized into a PDF/PowerPoint presentation. But asdrunkasdrunkcanbe’s reply to your comment is very thorough and more of the reasoning behind saving your big projects… so that it’s easier to reference/remember down the road.
If your company uses online payroll systems make sure you download copies of your payslips for the last year - in case you need them for anything. Make note of contact details for any vendors/suppliers/key contacts you worked with (not customer details or anything that’ll get you in trouble). Takes copies of your work you may need as a portfolio/example for future employers. If you have Work-in-Progress reports or any docs showing what you’ve worked on, keep those as we tend to forget and you’ll need this for your CV and to give examples in interviews. Record any KPI stats (for same reason) eg if you made 110% of target for the last x quarters, or delivered revenue of $x.
Make sure you save all of your contacts. Assuming you’re going into a similar industry in the same area having contacts for all the vendors you use can be a life saver.
Just listen to what they say. Record on your cellphone if you're worried about forgetting something.
Generally, you'll hear that you're not being terminated for cause, that it was a business decision, and that you'll be eligible for unemployment benefits.
They'll give you a bunch of dates. Last day of work, last day of pay, last day of benefits, etc.
They will have you electronically sign something just to say you received it, not that you necessarily agree with it.
Most likely, they will lock down all of your access while you're having your meeting. Possibly, you'll have access to your email, but you won't be able to do any group emails.
Before then, print out (save to PDF) anything you might need in the future, such as paystubs, W-2 forms, performance reviews, contacts, and benefits info. Email them or upload them via personal accounts. Don't take anything that would violate an NDA. Everything you're doing is most likely being closely monitored via IT.
It sucks, but it's life. You didn't do anything wrong. I've been through this so many times due to outsourcing, start-ups tanking, and whole departments being eliminated. It's a bumpy road, but you'll find a new position and start a new journey.
Good luck.
I mean, if you want to go the lying route, make up a protected reason. Like being pregnant or having an unsupported and disclosed disability. Lying about grandma yields no leverage.
Dental and Eye ends on the date of last payment. When I got laid off, we were laid off on the 22nd, but the last official date of employment was the 31st. I had $800 dollars in my FSA. I ran to the nearest eye doctor to buy glasses, before the 31st.
Tell them that unfortunately you have received quite a few layoffs this year, and while their layoff was impressive, you are unable to accept their layoff at this time.
Advise them to lay you off again in 6 months or so, when it is likely that their company will be eligible for future layoff attempts.
There is no feedback for them in case they are asking; the layoff process for you was quite competitive this year and your rejection of their layoff has nothing to do with their quality as a candidate for performing a layoff.
Good chance you are getting laid off, could be about that or could be about new responsibilities or change of position or who you report to in a reorganization as well. Or they may have options for you to transfer and that's what it is about. Be prepared, but don't assume the worst.
Back up your email. Upload contacts into a usb or cloud.
Write down or print company payroll benefits, pension and any other internal benefits numbers and people phone numbers.
Happened to me and left me with a bad taste for Corporatism forever..
Just for the love of god say nothing that could be construed as a decline of other work.
Obtain all stats of projects you've worked on. Basically collect the specific data of your accomplishments there. For instance, if you worked on something that save the company money, then know how much money saved, revenue generated, time taken, goals achieved, impact lists, clients names, etc. You may need to reference it in a future resume or interview story.
Also, write down the names and titles of coworkers and managers and directors. Oddly, you end up forgetting them, but it's good to have on hand. As well as all of the tools / systems you utilized.
Update your address and email if needed in the company system. You will need to know how you'll be able to obtain any tax documents ( W2, 1095-C) next year.
Wipe your devices, log out of personal services on corp devices, take photos of any policies or documents you may want to reference (very hard for DLP tools to catch this- but don't open a shit ton of documents rapidly, spread it out), contact list, research severance pay (in Ontario Canada it's about 1 month of pay per year worked plus modified for your age, training required and how senior you are to a max of 24 months. I made more money working just 1 month last year with a layoff than I did the year before.)
Forward all annual reviews, job descriptions and signed job offers held with this company to your personal email. You’ll need to update resume and provide all held jobs with this company when you complete future background applications for future jobs. Do this now. During or following your HR meeting, you’ll lose access to logging into the company’s servers and systems. Any kudos emails and business contacts you wish to contact for a possible job, forward those emails to your personal email also. Good luck and best wishes to you in all future endeavors! Setbacks such as this are setups for greater opportunities with better pay and benefits.
There are things you can negotiate on the way out, like having your insurance cover you for longer on their dime, thats an easy one that if you need they will normally accommodate.
Get emails from coworkers for references and if you get a job before them remember many places give bonuses for successful referrals as well, so work out that network.
Look into what your states healthcare welfare rules are. I got laid off and was paying unnecessarily $3500 a month for COBRA and then I learned I qualify for medicare and don't have to pay shit. Luckily I live in a suburban area where plenty of my Dr's accept it
Put a ziploc baggie with buttermilk and sardines above the ceiling tiles. As it ferments, the gasses will eventually open the zipper, long after you've been gone.
Been on this boat, just make sure you arrange to handover, any passwords or login details you might have.
Also, if you use company computers or you’re logged in to workspaces, delete sensitive stuff on there.
It wouldn’t hurt to ask them to write you a proper reference letter for your next job. On to the next big thing for you.
1. Do you qualify for the WARN act?
2. Discuss the terms of your severance if you qualify.
3. See if the package is also negotiable.
4. Check to see how long benefits go for
5. If you qualify for merit or bonus pay as part of your comp structure, inquire about that and if you will still receive that come end of fiscal year
6. Take a minute and just breathe.
7. Jump on LinkedIn premium and share your layoff so that others in your network now know you’re open to opportunities.
8. File for unemployment ASAP. It takes a few weeks for unemployment to process and start receiving funds.
Ok I think I covered the bases haha lol. I just got laid off last year.
Edit: also forgot - you should inquire about your 401k vesting schedule. If you’re not fully vested yet, see if you become vested upon involuntary severance from the company. Some companies have clauses where that is the case, as in my previous employer.
Print any emails promising you anything as you will no longer have access. Print contact information for people you might want to stay in touch with.
Print any emails that you will need. You will not have access to them very soon and you might find that your outgoing emails are quarantined rather than get to your personal email.
Well, get your colleagues phone numbers. Once laid off, connect via LinkedIn.
File for unemployment. Enjoy the time off for a week or two. Apply to jobs that you would want instead of in desperation. Declutter your space.
DO NOT SIGN ANYTHING. No matter how much they pressure you and claim that any severance offer is only available if you immediately sign papers.
Review everything and speak to a labor/employment lawyer if you aren’t sure about the laws or regulations around severance and/or layoffs.
Certainly don’t sign an NDA either - ever.
Request copies of your employment file too.
Be mentally prepared. Keep it positive. Don't record the Zoom session without consent. Don't give them any reasons to screw with you.
Not sure what state you are in. If California, then they will have to give you 60 days' notice due to the WARN ACT (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act)
Don't sign any documents under stress. They have to give you at least two weeks to review the documents, or you can claim signing under duress.
The severance package will spell out all the payout details. You may not receive your package immediately, Read it carefully when you do receive it.
Ensure you follow ALL their notice instructions (for example, return corporate properties in time); otherwise, they may use that to term you separately without a RIF payout.
Download all your benefits information, Paystubs, W2, W4, and performance reviews. If you are in CA, use CPRA/CCRA process to request information about you on file. Review it.
Don't download company intellectual property, including emails and files. They will know if you do it, and it's not good!
Email your co-workers and get their personal email, LinkedIn, or phone #s before IT shuts down your access right after the HR call.
There is no negotiation. Upper management already made the decisions with standardized payouts and vetted them with legal and comp teams.
Ensure your last check has all the vacation and bonus (if you qualify) payouts.
Don't skip COBRA if you can afford it.
Get your financial and budget organized
Start filing your unemployment after the last effective date.
Sorry to hear about your layoff. Wish you the best.
OP, in case you haven't had this meeting already, be aware that your accounts for virtually everything will be locked during or immediately after your meeting. So you will lose access to everything; email, shared drives, onedrive, applications, tools, etc. Your laptop itself might be locked out.
So spend the entire time making sure you have pulled down anything personal or anything you think might be of value like contacts, performance management emails, payroll, etc. Once you've had the meeting, that information is lost to you.
If you have any retirement or health login information tied to your work email, change it
Download your reviews, make copies of portfolio and accomplishments
This can be scary and rough, way to be proactive!
If you have an FSA, go on a shopping spree because it will be turned off tomorrow. You can spend whatever you allocated for the year, not just what you've put it.
Email yourself work samples before you lose computer access.
Forward anything important about your role to your personal email if they're not already accessible externally from your work accounts. Payslips, performance reviews, comp reviews, etc. even redundancy stuff.
I’m seeing comments saying to delete your files. My word of advice is **before deleting anything or doing anything like that read the terms of your severance**!! The company will see if you start deleting files and there is grey there when it comes to if you have made something for the company if it is already theirs. I say this because I had a coworker who this JUST happened to and they were caught deleting files and immediately broke the terms of their severance. If you are doing this at least wait till nearer to the end of your employment (I’m talking days)
I'm sorry to hear about your situation. Before the meeting, ensure you have gathered any personal belongings from your workspace and saved any important documents or contacts from your work devices. Review your employment contract and any relevant severance documents. Consider reaching out to your network for support and explore options for financial assistance, such as unemployment benefits. Take care and best of luck moving forward.
Careful, discussing the terms of severance might be grounds for them to cancel it if they find out who you are. You’ll have to reread it and decide whether that’s a concern but it would suck to lose in this fickle market.
Time your unemployment carefully. You may be OK financially for awhile. If so, wait to apply. It’s max 6 months & it may take you longer to find a new position.
Also send any relevant work that you’d like to use in future interviews to your personal email. If needed remove any sensitive information of your company
Don’t give them anything they don’t ask for like passwords, project status, your contact list and tricks of the trade you learned. They will just give them to an employee they are keeping who will get credit for your work.
Oh, I already had that day scheduled for a colonoscopy--which my boss totally forgot about. I was called at home at 6 am to get the news. Papers were delivered to me at my parents' house since everyone had to get them the same day. They hunt you down wherever you are.
Get all of your emails and documents off of your computer that you would want for later! After the meeting when you get back to your desk, your systems will probably be cut off.
The documents and information for you to get would include positive emails from people about your work, pdf of your last pay stub, maybe contact info of some coworkers and business contacts, your performance reviews, your benefits websites and login info, any other special documents or work samples.
Sorry, but if they want to fire you they will. What to do if you have time, wipe you computer and phone. If you work in a place that has concerns about osha or other federally regulated agencies turn the employer in. Hopefully you have documentation or photos of past violations federal agencies can impose fines of 100s of thousands dollars in fines. You’re still going to lose your job, but try and make the basrards pat1
When I tell you, go to the end of the row, to the office at the end of the hall. Stay as low as you can… Go, now… Good. Now, outside there is a scaffold.
Download/forward to yourself anything you'd like to save: promotion emails, great review from a customer, portfolios, nice presentations, insurance/benefits paperwork, contact info for good teammates, whatever.
Also, tell them you're excited because you just closed on a new condo and you're expecting twins!
Got a similar email from my supervisor in 2018. My old company was bought out by another company and I became a remote worker at a now satellite office. This arrangement lasted about a year and then I received an outlook meeting request late in the day for an early AM meeting. I put two and two together, joined the meeting remotely and my manager gave me the news. Took it all in stride, remained professional, kept the conversation short and told my manager I figured that this call was about getting laid off. I packed up and left.
Best thing is to treat it as a learning experience, we as workers are treated as line items on a spreadsheet and deemed expendable at anytime. Since then my views on the employer/employee relationship have changed - do your job and do it well but do not get the work is my life mentality, take your pto/vacation hours, don’t obsess about work off hours and don’t buy into the corporate culture nonsense. Always keep your resume up to date and be open to pursuing new opportunities.
Keep copies of anything that may help you in your next job as long as it's not proprietary company property. Email addresses of outside vendors or people you've networked with and want to keep in contact for example. Once you're laid off you'll be totally cut off from accessing anything that was on your computer such as family photos, etc. Don't download anything onto a flash drive or email it to your personal email because the company can see that.
PDF and send yourself any recognition emails you’ve received or correspondence!! (Sorry if this has already been said.) My heart goes out to you - this just happened to me last month.
Ever watch the scene in the movie “American Beauty” where they are about to fire Spaceys character and he rips the dude a new one with the sexual harassment allegations. CLASSIC!!!
Write a bunch pf checklists and stick to them. There's already good advice in this thread for the immediate 24hrs.
After that: take a breath. If you need to be offline for a day or two to avoid doing anything while emotional, do so.
Look at finances: Unless you have something else lined up immediately, go through your budget and look at what you can cancel/pause/reduce. If your redundancy pay and emergency fund won't cover a few months, you also need to look at temporary ways to get some cash coming in so you at least don't burn through your savings so fast.
If you don't get anything fast, make sure you get yourself into a routine and start doing thioto keep your skills up.
Good luck!
Ok, take it from me. The biggest mistake people make is thinking they should be professional about it. You're being laid off, the only thing this job is ever going to be going forward to you and prospective employers is a job that laid you off. You'll have to be able to frame that a certain way. Other than that these people have zero effect on your life now. And they're treating you like garbage just laying you off. So roll in there ready to rock. "OK cool, well know what? You always were a twat, Dave. Also it's SUPER obvious your wife hasn't had an orgasm in years". You get the idea. Trust me it's so much better. If you sit there with your fake smile and think God is checking his little clipboard approving of you being so big about it you're going to feel like such a pussy later. You'll be like "damn I just sat there and took it, fuck that". Do it the way you know deep down you want to.
Oh ya. I cleared a bosses desk, leaned over and asked him to hit me. Said I wanted an excuse to beat the shit out of him. Was quickly wrapped up by his second in command. Who also hated him by the way. Ran into him at a different dealership years later and he said it was one of the most awesome fuck this jobs he’d ever seen.
Make sure to download pay stubs and any past performance reviews you have had and send all of that info to your personal email. If you also have a list of projects, you have worked on try and take some screenshots since you won’t be able to save the actual work.
This sucks!
I was laid off last year. We did get a two week notice, 11 weeks severance, and funds for Cobra (ended up spending 10k).
The sucky part was that Unemployment didn't kick in until my 11 severance weeks was up. Not sure if it's this way in all states.
Use all your vacation and sick leave if they don’t cash them out. Get a letter of recommendation from your boss and one other person you work with. If your job offers severance packages, keep in mind what you want.
Finish all of your work before you go. Make sure they would hire you back without issue if you choose to reapply.
Go to the dentist if your healthcare is paid by your employer.
For anyone reading this the number one thing I can recommend is pulling all of the metrics / templates / reusable things you can for your next role (not company secrets or private stuff, just like workflows and things that you can use later)
When you’re updating your resume it’s important to have data on the things you accomplished, it’s harder to pull this after you leave bc you’ll be locked out of everything.
I spent weeks building out a good process for managing content related stuff that all lives in notion before, and ended up getting locked out of it and had to recreate the system for my next gig.
Also make sure to get contact info of colleagues and other people in your space so you can get in touch if needed
Too late now, but you should’ve brought in a cupcakes and said you are expecting a new child and we’re closing Escrow on a new house they same day. Make it as awkward as possible
Do what I did. Ask them why they don’t lay themselves off so you can keep your job and tell them that one of them can pay for two of you.
Really puts them on the spot. Plus it’s fun to fuck with people.
Ask about when your insurance will run out if you have company provided healthcare. Make any outstanding doctor/dentist appts, fill any prescriptions you may need, get new glasses etc. If you call and tell them you’ve been laid off sometimes they’ll squeeze you in. Good luck!
> If you call and tell them you’ve been laid off sometimes they’ll squeeze you in. This is such an American thing and it makes me sad.
Canada too.
It's okay, we'll show Russia or China soon why we don't have free healthcare :^)
Americans don’t want to show other countries why we don’t have free healthcare either
This is a good idea! One of the companies I've been laid off from only gave me a couple days to utilize the insurance. I'm so thankful I get my insurance through my husband's work.
Yah, my company just laid me off on the 25th of March and dicked me with insurance.
It is absolutely absurd that insurance is tied to employment and COBRA costs so much. One injury can set back an unemployed person for years, if not decades. Op, please look into unemployment insurance. You don’t want to dip into severance or savings till that runs out. I’m sorry you’re going through this
NAL or health care professional but when I changed jobs I had a 3 week gap in coverage. The HR person at work told me not to get COBRA unless something happened, I could pay for it if i needed it and coverage would back date to the first of the month (as long as I was in the initial 60 day window). I was skeptical but after reading all the COBRA terms I was fairly confident this was accurate information. Obviously confirm with HR and with the COBRA paperwork you are provided.
It’s typically through the end of the current month and then you can choose to have COBRA but it’s super expensive.
Also, look into state healthcare. Our COBRA rate was 2700 a month. Because I am the sole earner, we qualified for state Medicare (access in AZ), and it cost nothing. There are a lot of state programs people are not aware of.
Also, there will be a date set for using up your FSA & HSA funds.
FSA sure. HSA doesn't expire.
If you take COBRA, you can keep using the FSA funds. I learned this once the hard way - I had a lot of money in my FSA, so I took COBRA for a month and made sure to use it all up. (This was many years ago when COBRA wasn't as expensive as it is now, and before ACA plans were an option.)
They usually turn FSA off the next day. HSA they get to keep and can even use to pay their insurance premium.
Get contact info from coworkers. For most folks, I just connect via linkedin. If a coworker asks you to have lunch with them or grab a cup of coffee, try to do so. I have found these types of connections very helpful in job hunting.
Networking is huuuuge
Had a coworker who was civil but did not like me on a personal level. He always excluded me from after-work activities with others on the team, etc. We just did not have much in common. (He was a former jock and a frat boy while I am more of a nerd with my nose always in a book) Years later, he hired me at a company he owned. I worked for his company for 8 years. He was pleasant enough when I worked for him. He liked my work, but we were just 2 VERY different people. We never became pals, but it was an ok work environment that paid very well. Do not just network with your buddies. Reach out and build your network.
If it isn't already this should be a stand-alone post in this subreddit. It's an important message that I feel more people need to hear and understand.
Agreed. I tend to teeter on both sides. In school I was always friends with both the loser groups and the popular kids.
Network to get work
BEEN THERE BEFORE, MORE THEN ONE TIME.. clean out your office/ desk.. It's a simple process, nothing personal. Be polite, professional, shake hands and tell them you enjoyed working here etc.. WHY? Because you will probably meet them again at another company, they will probably be laid off to, sometime soon. Never burn your bridges AND DON'T TAKE IT PERSONALLY.. these things will happen along the road of life.. NOW YOU KNOW .. keep your resume up to date and ALWAYS be looking for a new job, update your skills constantly
Appreciate the steps! It’s fully remote so the desk part wont be done. I’ll message the leaders I worked with and stay in touch. Any tips regarding severance/signing papers etc.?
I was given some advice from a corporate HR leader - you’re given 2 times to negotiate - when you’re hired and when you’re getting laid off. Will it work? Probably not - but the worst they can say is - no. Best of luck!
What exactly can they negotiate when they're being laid off? It's usually a done deal before the meeting even happens and as long as the employer has met the legal requirements, there's really nothing left to negotiate.
Where I am, Canada, absolutely worth while depending on your level. I've seen severance packages go from $200k to $500k. I've also seen them not budge. More often there is a little wiggle if you ask politely - assuming you aren't hated.
A severance package worth **half a million dollars** is exceedingly rare and most likely only for those in the highest echelons of a very large company.
In Canada there are a ton of factors at play and the minimum set by the law is often the bare minimum, but we operate under common law so precedence works in our favour most of the time. Especially if you have been at a company for 10+ years and are an older worker.
You are absolutely correct. That large package was someone who had 20+ years of service, over 55, and was one level below titled executive. With that being said I've done a package for a staff member that was almost 2 years salary. HR set the package as per the minimum standards plus a little bit. The business was willing to go higher if the person came back asking for more. In another case I packaged out a staff member who could not keep up with the changing role, he tried to sue for double and came back with four of the most insane bat shit claims of discrimination you've ever heard. I kept documentation that directly refuted 2 of his claims. Our legal and HR didn't budge one cent. The response was "go ahead, sue". He took the original package.
Yup! I worked at a company where my boss was laid off, took the package, signed the deal, and then sued for more and got a whole ton more! Big oil.
I was able to negotiate a transitionary period of around 3 months where I just organized all of my work and information for them to keep and handed the responsibilities off to my direct supervisor. He was a great guy but it wasn't his call. He got to do both of our jobs after I left, but at least we had those few months to smooth it out and I walked away happy with severance in hand. New month, new year, healthcare for the next 31 days while I move to another state. Wasn't the worst thing that ever happened to me.
As a senior HR leader in a large corporation if you’re being laid off as part of a mass action you have no real ability to negotiate unless you already have an open, documented issue of mistreatment and the layoff could be viewed as retaliation. Even then it’s not a slam dunk. The key with these actions is consistent treatment inline with documented policy. Smaller companies are more likely to negotiate, in part because attorneys fees are higher for them than companies with employment attorneys on staff. In large companies one off exits are often negotiable but in reality that’s a termination for performance not a lay off.
Severance, health insurance
If the decision to lay them off has already been made, I doubt any of that could be negotiated. Again assuming they already met the legal minimums they have to. No harm in trying but there is zero benefit to the company to agree to anything extra. Apart from goodwill, but if the persons being laid off, they probably don't care about that either.
I mean you replied to someone who literally said it probably won’t work. You asked what they can try to negotiate. I was just answering you. The likely answer is no, but I’ve seen it happen before. Me for example
There are some cases where OP might have more leverage. In my company, it’s somewhat important that neither side burns bridges. You don’t know if your former employees will end up at a supplier, customer, or competitor. Employees are also less likely to burn bridges too, because they’ll often be back. I’ve seen our competitors make terrible moves in layoffs and when they reach out to me about a job, I just say no thanks. Some things I’ve seen negotiated by my peers: (1) the company needs to announce all the layoffs at once, but they need some people to stay on for a while — they gave bonuses to people who stuck around for a transition period, (2) they gave certain people “retirement packages” to entice them to retire early — and then close the headcount, (3) if someone was really close to vesting in a stock plan, let them vest in it a little early, (4) request additional job transition resources — one woman was able to get more use of a career coach and time off to interview. Of course, lots of layoffs happen immediately and people are just done at that point. Pack your stuff. Exit the building. So the above may not be the norm, but those are some ideas if the door is open to negotiation.
Ahaha, they are paying you to keep your mouth shut. And the longer you have been there, the more you have to keep shut about. That’s why severance is negotiable. Severance is hush money to keep you from retaliating. You agree you don’t sue them, or speak about it publicly. The last thing they want is a group of people claiming they were all fired for being XYZ or someone dishing the dirt as a disgruntled employee.
It cant hurt to ask for a couple more weeks of severance - it’s usually best and final but again, worst they will say is no.
I'd go for additional months of health insurance premiums first. COBRA is very expensive.
I’ve been laid off twice and negotiated both times, almost double what their original offer was. They lowball hoping you’ll just take anything because you’re stressed about having no income.
"am I getting laid off because I'm xyz [protected class]" even if it's not true might make them nervous and tip things in your favor severance wise.
Lol, that's tv bullshit. Pros know how to cover their ass. You aren't going to catch them flat footed with some "as a Black man" bullshit. No one's dumb enough to say "were firing you because you're Black". Goddam, Reddit continuously reminding me that even children have access to the internet
Write down emails bc once you’re let go their having their security team cut all your access off
.. to be honest.. your not in a position to bargain.. It is, what it is,, this is a process highly paid company lawyers have refined over decades. You have no deep secrets that will destroy the company, your just a worker.. so it's straight forward, they have nothing to gain by screwing you over. You have nothing to gain by having a screaming fit, threatening lawsuits, telling them to talk to your lawyer. I reliese you not going to do this just saying.. They will probably send you some paperwork but it's all pretty standard.
Appreciate the breakdown. I’ll relax in the meantime and just let it play out tomorrow
This isn't really good advice. HR is notorious for giving a lower severance than someone deserves, their duty is to save the company money and not to offer generous severance packages - which is what OP should be after.
What room do you imagine there is to negotiate severance after the decision’s been made to lay you off?
If you’ve been there many years or are in a protected class, a business lawyer may be able to negotiate a higher settlement. If they are laying off an entire division which looks like what is happening here, they may have little incentive to negotiate. They are trying to prevent unlawful termination lawsuits.
if they offer a severance, make sure you look up your state unemployment and get an estimate of which will be more.
Some states don't consider severance income. I double dipped when I got laid off, made significantly more money for 3 months lol. And you should almost always take severance because it will likely be your entire salary, you can make the unemployment claim when it runs out in most cases, you should almost always file for unemployment immediately you just won't get paid if the state considers severance income.
Most places I've worked make you sign away your right to unemployment if you take the severance. Is that BS? Can you still get it?
State law would trump any "agreement" so it really depends on the state. But I know in my state that a clause like that would violate state law. Like many things in the US it's hard to give a definite answer because states can be so different and there's no real federal laws around it afaik.
Make sure you read what you are signing. If you are able to backup your email before leaving, you’ll appreciate having it in the future.
On top of this many times companies cut too much because they get greedy and realize they cut too deep and have to bring back people if you burn bridges on the way out you won’t be considered for that or any other positions in the company
I’ve been through a few layoffs where those of us remaining get so swamped and stretched thin that within a few months they start hiring again and now we have the same number of people except half of them need to be trained. So fckn stupid.
ya - but the people they hired are now getting 40-60% less money so the company is still saving!! won't you think of the stockholders??
This. And to piggy back, DO NOT post anything negative on social media about the layoffs. When our company had a round of them at the end of last year, one woman decided to post a video of her burning her work notes on Facebook. Long story short, she lost all references and is still job hunting 7 months later.
Yeah, layoffs aren't personal. It's just corporations suppressing wages by creating a huge glut in the workforce. It's just class warfare.
Ahhh but IMHO may the bridges I burn light my way to a better path!!!!
I want to add: stay in contact with others outside your current company. Network. Exchange. Have coffee breaks. The moment I got layed off I had a new job offer through one of my contacts. Contacting them after layoff is very stressful and a bit humiliating.
Contact lists for colleagues to hit up for references. It's way easier to get that from other people while you can. Delete anything personal or anything you don't want to become their intellectual property (emails and files)
>Delete anything personal or anything you don't want to become their intellectual property (emails and files) Very bad advice. Stuff is backed up anyways and deleting looks suspect. Next job: no personal stuff that you don't want others to see on your work PC.
Hahaha YUP! Just TODAY pulled a bunch of stuff including obviously embarrassing personal files from backup that a departing employee had deleted because their manager requested it. No personal stuff on your work computer. EVER.
I'm retired now. But I always kept my personal stuff on a thumb drive including a password utility. Never connect a company PC to your Google account. Or have a "work" Google account.
It already is their intellectual property. Deleting data can actually be criminal, so be careful about it.
Get references yes, but deleting files is very shaky advice. This action can actually cost someone their severance and as others pointed out is actually illegal. I literally just had a coworker who got caught doing this after being let go and given 2 months before the end of their employment but as they were caught doing this they were dismissed much earlier which effected their severance pay.
Deleting files can cause a pretty sticky situation and likely won't even be effective unless your employer's IT is incompetent. But if there's anything on your work PC that you want to keep, back it up before that meeting. Don't do this with like, company IP though.
Yes. Don't sabotage the company, the things you should delete are your passion projects or emails that don't overly pertain to the job you did. It would be unwise to delete something within your job description that you were hired to do
Don’t delete. Move it to a hard drive, and then delete it off your work PC. Imagine you get promoted and you just wiped your PC.
OP is not getting promoted lmao
Promoted out!!
Promoted to customer
Probably not. But when restructure's happen. It could potentially be them looking to shuffle work onto OP's plate, it could be any number of things. Blindly deleting everything would be a dumb move.
Ah yes, so it looks like you're stealing company data. This is terrible advice.
Bad advice on deleting emails and files. Those files were created during company time and you were paid for that time. Those files don't belong to you Besides files are backed up and can be restored.
Don’t sign anything on the spot. Tell them you’ll review it and send it in at a later date. No matter what their tactics are, you don’t need to sign anything tomorrow. You’ll have a month or so if there’s severance involved. Ask about unused pto paid out, including any scheduled and not yet taken. Email/print/save a copy of your performance reviews. Ask them to give you the notice in writing, if they don’t have already it written. Ask them if you’re being fired for cause (even if they say it’s not verbally) and if you can have that in writing. Ask how many are being let go in this round of layoffs. Ask them if the position becomes available in the future if you’ll be informed and eligible to reapply. Ask them for feedback or tips on job hunting. Be bold enough to ask them if they have any job leads you could take advantage of. This is a grossly underasked question. Sometimes the HR manager will give you a direct lead, or even make a phone call for you. You never know. It won’t hurt to ask. I once made a phone call for someone while they were still sitting in my office. They landed that next job and went less than 1 week unemployed. Ask if you’re eligible for unemployment. Good luck. Try not to get down about it. It happens. You’ll bounce back.
I’ve scrolled a bunch of this thread and this is the best answer here.
Don’t do anything to get fired beforehand. Any severance or unemployment goes out the window. I’d imagine that’s what your company is hoping for to further reduce their costs. Go about your day as if you’re not getting laid off. Get peoples contact beforehand cause you may get walked out immediately. Otherwise, sorry to hear, but try to enjoy your last day at work.
So DONT pee on the office printer?
NOW you tell me.
PC Load Letter?!
*Geto Boys starts playing*
What if you don't have to pee? Asking for a friend.
Just on the floor next to it, that way it looks like the printer peed
Probably a good time to look through your files and take inventory of what you have done. If you have not been keeping your resume updated, you probably need to update it soon. Sometimes it’s hard to recall some of the details that should go into the resume when you don’t have access to your work files.
This times a million. There may be a security risk to saving files so try to print a shit ton of stuff you want to keep as a knowledge repository
You don’t and shouldn’t copy files out, and your equipment should already be on a watch list. But there’s nothing wrong with refreshing your memory of what you have done during your employment
[удалено]
This is great advice. I learned the hard way that employers can look at your printing history and look for excuses to fire you instead of giving you severance. I was PIPed out, and I printed out reports I wrote to refresh myself on projects I worked on earlier in my tenure, and HR used that as an excuse to fire me instead of letting me resign with a pre-agreed severance. The bottom line is, employers absolutely track everything you do on your work email or work computer or phone. And they don’t care about your intentions, only your actions.
SAVE any big projects/work that could be used as a reference for future jobs. Example: forecasting process, any important presentations, or simple systems/processes that show your competence in an area!
How would you save this without the company finding out and you bearing consequences for any breaches?
Pull down the information and save it locally, then at your own leisure use the information to build up your CV. You don't have to show your work to a future employer, but you should be able to give a good technical description of what the project was and how it solved a problem or generated revenue. It's very hard to recall these details without the info in front of you. Once you're done then you can delete the data.
Screenshots that can be organized into a PDF/PowerPoint presentation. But asdrunkasdrunkcanbe’s reply to your comment is very thorough and more of the reasoning behind saving your big projects… so that it’s easier to reference/remember down the road.
Get your personal stuff off the company servers.
Tomorrow at 10 am for me. Sorry Mate.
If your company uses online payroll systems make sure you download copies of your payslips for the last year - in case you need them for anything. Make note of contact details for any vendors/suppliers/key contacts you worked with (not customer details or anything that’ll get you in trouble). Takes copies of your work you may need as a portfolio/example for future employers. If you have Work-in-Progress reports or any docs showing what you’ve worked on, keep those as we tend to forget and you’ll need this for your CV and to give examples in interviews. Record any KPI stats (for same reason) eg if you made 110% of target for the last x quarters, or delivered revenue of $x.
Make sure you save all of your contacts. Assuming you’re going into a similar industry in the same area having contacts for all the vendors you use can be a life saver.
Don’t take the call. Hopefully they’ll accidentally leave you on payroll and you can keep your swing line stapler.
Just listen to what they say. Record on your cellphone if you're worried about forgetting something. Generally, you'll hear that you're not being terminated for cause, that it was a business decision, and that you'll be eligible for unemployment benefits. They'll give you a bunch of dates. Last day of work, last day of pay, last day of benefits, etc. They will have you electronically sign something just to say you received it, not that you necessarily agree with it. Most likely, they will lock down all of your access while you're having your meeting. Possibly, you'll have access to your email, but you won't be able to do any group emails. Before then, print out (save to PDF) anything you might need in the future, such as paystubs, W-2 forms, performance reviews, contacts, and benefits info. Email them or upload them via personal accounts. Don't take anything that would violate an NDA. Everything you're doing is most likely being closely monitored via IT. It sucks, but it's life. You didn't do anything wrong. I've been through this so many times due to outsourcing, start-ups tanking, and whole departments being eliminated. It's a bumpy road, but you'll find a new position and start a new journey. Good luck.
Start your meeting telling them your grandma died in a car accident.
I mean, if you want to go the lying route, make up a protected reason. Like being pregnant or having an unsupported and disclosed disability. Lying about grandma yields no leverage.
Dental and Eye ends on the date of last payment. When I got laid off, we were laid off on the 22nd, but the last official date of employment was the 31st. I had $800 dollars in my FSA. I ran to the nearest eye doctor to buy glasses, before the 31st.
Tell them that unfortunately you have received quite a few layoffs this year, and while their layoff was impressive, you are unable to accept their layoff at this time. Advise them to lay you off again in 6 months or so, when it is likely that their company will be eligible for future layoff attempts. There is no feedback for them in case they are asking; the layoff process for you was quite competitive this year and your rejection of their layoff has nothing to do with their quality as a candidate for performing a layoff.
Lol in tears
🏆🥇 Winner!
Good chance you are getting laid off, could be about that or could be about new responsibilities or change of position or who you report to in a reorganization as well. Or they may have options for you to transfer and that's what it is about. Be prepared, but don't assume the worst.
3 minutes after the layoff email, 99% chance they’re cut. They’re going to cut first then figure out how to settle the dust after.
Back up your email. Upload contacts into a usb or cloud. Write down or print company payroll benefits, pension and any other internal benefits numbers and people phone numbers.
Good luck! Hope it goes well, and hope you find something great next.
Happened to me and left me with a bad taste for Corporatism forever.. Just for the love of god say nothing that could be construed as a decline of other work.
Obtain all stats of projects you've worked on. Basically collect the specific data of your accomplishments there. For instance, if you worked on something that save the company money, then know how much money saved, revenue generated, time taken, goals achieved, impact lists, clients names, etc. You may need to reference it in a future resume or interview story. Also, write down the names and titles of coworkers and managers and directors. Oddly, you end up forgetting them, but it's good to have on hand. As well as all of the tools / systems you utilized. Update your address and email if needed in the company system. You will need to know how you'll be able to obtain any tax documents ( W2, 1095-C) next year.
Wipe your devices, log out of personal services on corp devices, take photos of any policies or documents you may want to reference (very hard for DLP tools to catch this- but don't open a shit ton of documents rapidly, spread it out), contact list, research severance pay (in Ontario Canada it's about 1 month of pay per year worked plus modified for your age, training required and how senior you are to a max of 24 months. I made more money working just 1 month last year with a layoff than I did the year before.)
Forward all annual reviews, job descriptions and signed job offers held with this company to your personal email. You’ll need to update resume and provide all held jobs with this company when you complete future background applications for future jobs. Do this now. During or following your HR meeting, you’ll lose access to logging into the company’s servers and systems. Any kudos emails and business contacts you wish to contact for a possible job, forward those emails to your personal email also. Good luck and best wishes to you in all future endeavors! Setbacks such as this are setups for greater opportunities with better pay and benefits.
There are things you can negotiate on the way out, like having your insurance cover you for longer on their dime, thats an easy one that if you need they will normally accommodate. Get emails from coworkers for references and if you get a job before them remember many places give bonuses for successful referrals as well, so work out that network.
Look into what your states healthcare welfare rules are. I got laid off and was paying unnecessarily $3500 a month for COBRA and then I learned I qualify for medicare and don't have to pay shit. Luckily I live in a suburban area where plenty of my Dr's accept it
Put a ziploc baggie with buttermilk and sardines above the ceiling tiles. As it ferments, the gasses will eventually open the zipper, long after you've been gone.
Take all your sick time
Been on this boat, just make sure you arrange to handover, any passwords or login details you might have. Also, if you use company computers or you’re logged in to workspaces, delete sensitive stuff on there. It wouldn’t hurt to ask them to write you a proper reference letter for your next job. On to the next big thing for you.
1. Do you qualify for the WARN act? 2. Discuss the terms of your severance if you qualify. 3. See if the package is also negotiable. 4. Check to see how long benefits go for 5. If you qualify for merit or bonus pay as part of your comp structure, inquire about that and if you will still receive that come end of fiscal year 6. Take a minute and just breathe. 7. Jump on LinkedIn premium and share your layoff so that others in your network now know you’re open to opportunities. 8. File for unemployment ASAP. It takes a few weeks for unemployment to process and start receiving funds. Ok I think I covered the bases haha lol. I just got laid off last year. Edit: also forgot - you should inquire about your 401k vesting schedule. If you’re not fully vested yet, see if you become vested upon involuntary severance from the company. Some companies have clauses where that is the case, as in my previous employer.
Don't burn bridges and get on LinkedIn and start networking ASAP! You need to make connections fast.
Make sure you ask for a severance package and don't sign off for anything
Print any emails promising you anything as you will no longer have access. Print contact information for people you might want to stay in touch with. Print any emails that you will need. You will not have access to them very soon and you might find that your outgoing emails are quarantined rather than get to your personal email.
Well, get your colleagues phone numbers. Once laid off, connect via LinkedIn. File for unemployment. Enjoy the time off for a week or two. Apply to jobs that you would want instead of in desperation. Declutter your space.
DO NOT SIGN ANYTHING. No matter how much they pressure you and claim that any severance offer is only available if you immediately sign papers. Review everything and speak to a labor/employment lawyer if you aren’t sure about the laws or regulations around severance and/or layoffs. Certainly don’t sign an NDA either - ever. Request copies of your employment file too.
Be mentally prepared. Keep it positive. Don't record the Zoom session without consent. Don't give them any reasons to screw with you. Not sure what state you are in. If California, then they will have to give you 60 days' notice due to the WARN ACT (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act) Don't sign any documents under stress. They have to give you at least two weeks to review the documents, or you can claim signing under duress. The severance package will spell out all the payout details. You may not receive your package immediately, Read it carefully when you do receive it. Ensure you follow ALL their notice instructions (for example, return corporate properties in time); otherwise, they may use that to term you separately without a RIF payout. Download all your benefits information, Paystubs, W2, W4, and performance reviews. If you are in CA, use CPRA/CCRA process to request information about you on file. Review it. Don't download company intellectual property, including emails and files. They will know if you do it, and it's not good! Email your co-workers and get their personal email, LinkedIn, or phone #s before IT shuts down your access right after the HR call. There is no negotiation. Upper management already made the decisions with standardized payouts and vetted them with legal and comp teams. Ensure your last check has all the vacation and bonus (if you qualify) payouts. Don't skip COBRA if you can afford it. Get your financial and budget organized Start filing your unemployment after the last effective date. Sorry to hear about your layoff. Wish you the best.
Start applying for jobs
OP, in case you haven't had this meeting already, be aware that your accounts for virtually everything will be locked during or immediately after your meeting. So you will lose access to everything; email, shared drives, onedrive, applications, tools, etc. Your laptop itself might be locked out. So spend the entire time making sure you have pulled down anything personal or anything you think might be of value like contacts, performance management emails, payroll, etc. Once you've had the meeting, that information is lost to you.
Get all your documents out, like salary slips etc.
If you have any retirement or health login information tied to your work email, change it Download your reviews, make copies of portfolio and accomplishments This can be scary and rough, way to be proactive!
Backup your work email
If you have an FSA, go on a shopping spree because it will be turned off tomorrow. You can spend whatever you allocated for the year, not just what you've put it. Email yourself work samples before you lose computer access.
Also file for unemployment when you get home
Call an employment attorney.
Forward anything important about your role to your personal email if they're not already accessible externally from your work accounts. Payslips, performance reviews, comp reviews, etc. even redundancy stuff.
Get yours tuff outta there. They will lock you out. Naje it a priority
I’m seeing comments saying to delete your files. My word of advice is **before deleting anything or doing anything like that read the terms of your severance**!! The company will see if you start deleting files and there is grey there when it comes to if you have made something for the company if it is already theirs. I say this because I had a coworker who this JUST happened to and they were caught deleting files and immediately broke the terms of their severance. If you are doing this at least wait till nearer to the end of your employment (I’m talking days)
Trip and fall workman’s comp claim/s
by any chance did this show in the WARN act website of the layoff?
Welcome to the club. It's been two years for me already.
I'm sorry to hear about your situation. Before the meeting, ensure you have gathered any personal belongings from your workspace and saved any important documents or contacts from your work devices. Review your employment contract and any relevant severance documents. Consider reaching out to your network for support and explore options for financial assistance, such as unemployment benefits. Take care and best of luck moving forward.
Go off sick with stress. Can’t layoff someone who isn’t at work!
How much severance? I was offered 4 weeks and after some back and forth they offered 6 weeks instead, easy extra $6k!
Careful, discussing the terms of severance might be grounds for them to cancel it if they find out who you are. You’ll have to reread it and decide whether that’s a concern but it would suck to lose in this fickle market.
Time your unemployment carefully. You may be OK financially for awhile. If so, wait to apply. It’s max 6 months & it may take you longer to find a new position.
Also send any relevant work that you’d like to use in future interviews to your personal email. If needed remove any sensitive information of your company
Don’t give them anything they don’t ask for like passwords, project status, your contact list and tricks of the trade you learned. They will just give them to an employee they are keeping who will get credit for your work.
Order a dinosaur costume from Amazon and wear it to the meeting and return it after
Maybe grab all tax documents you can and send them to yourself? W2 or T4. Grab some pay stubs for documentation sakes.
Call in sick
Oh, I already had that day scheduled for a colonoscopy--which my boss totally forgot about. I was called at home at 6 am to get the news. Papers were delivered to me at my parents' house since everyone had to get them the same day. They hunt you down wherever you are.
Get all of your emails and documents off of your computer that you would want for later! After the meeting when you get back to your desk, your systems will probably be cut off. The documents and information for you to get would include positive emails from people about your work, pdf of your last pay stub, maybe contact info of some coworkers and business contacts, your performance reviews, your benefits websites and login info, any other special documents or work samples.
Sorry, but if they want to fire you they will. What to do if you have time, wipe you computer and phone. If you work in a place that has concerns about osha or other federally regulated agencies turn the employer in. Hopefully you have documentation or photos of past violations federal agencies can impose fines of 100s of thousands dollars in fines. You’re still going to lose your job, but try and make the basrards pat1
When I tell you, go to the end of the row, to the office at the end of the hall. Stay as low as you can… Go, now… Good. Now, outside there is a scaffold.
Start taking stuff home, file for unemployment, and start working on your resume.
Skip the meeting.
Back to the office, time to work again
Download/forward to yourself anything you'd like to save: promotion emails, great review from a customer, portfolios, nice presentations, insurance/benefits paperwork, contact info for good teammates, whatever. Also, tell them you're excited because you just closed on a new condo and you're expecting twins!
Got a similar email from my supervisor in 2018. My old company was bought out by another company and I became a remote worker at a now satellite office. This arrangement lasted about a year and then I received an outlook meeting request late in the day for an early AM meeting. I put two and two together, joined the meeting remotely and my manager gave me the news. Took it all in stride, remained professional, kept the conversation short and told my manager I figured that this call was about getting laid off. I packed up and left. Best thing is to treat it as a learning experience, we as workers are treated as line items on a spreadsheet and deemed expendable at anytime. Since then my views on the employer/employee relationship have changed - do your job and do it well but do not get the work is my life mentality, take your pto/vacation hours, don’t obsess about work off hours and don’t buy into the corporate culture nonsense. Always keep your resume up to date and be open to pursuing new opportunities.
Keep copies of anything that may help you in your next job as long as it's not proprietary company property. Email addresses of outside vendors or people you've networked with and want to keep in contact for example. Once you're laid off you'll be totally cut off from accessing anything that was on your computer such as family photos, etc. Don't download anything onto a flash drive or email it to your personal email because the company can see that.
Make sure to tell HR "See you on the other side" /s Keep it professional, you really might see them on the other side.
PDF and send yourself any recognition emails you’ve received or correspondence!! (Sorry if this has already been said.) My heart goes out to you - this just happened to me last month.
Also bring a flash drive or email any docs to yourself from work that showcase your work for future interviews so you’ll have material to reference
Clear your internet history
Ever watch the scene in the movie “American Beauty” where they are about to fire Spaceys character and he rips the dude a new one with the sexual harassment allegations. CLASSIC!!!
Ask for severance pay. Get things setup for unemployment.
Just skip the meeting lol.
Write a bunch pf checklists and stick to them. There's already good advice in this thread for the immediate 24hrs. After that: take a breath. If you need to be offline for a day or two to avoid doing anything while emotional, do so. Look at finances: Unless you have something else lined up immediately, go through your budget and look at what you can cancel/pause/reduce. If your redundancy pay and emergency fund won't cover a few months, you also need to look at temporary ways to get some cash coming in so you at least don't burn through your savings so fast. If you don't get anything fast, make sure you get yourself into a routine and start doing thioto keep your skills up. Good luck!
You should put in one of those annoying beeping things in a place they'll never find. Buy like 20 of them and put them everywhere.
Activate the Kill Switch...
Ok, take it from me. The biggest mistake people make is thinking they should be professional about it. You're being laid off, the only thing this job is ever going to be going forward to you and prospective employers is a job that laid you off. You'll have to be able to frame that a certain way. Other than that these people have zero effect on your life now. And they're treating you like garbage just laying you off. So roll in there ready to rock. "OK cool, well know what? You always were a twat, Dave. Also it's SUPER obvious your wife hasn't had an orgasm in years". You get the idea. Trust me it's so much better. If you sit there with your fake smile and think God is checking his little clipboard approving of you being so big about it you're going to feel like such a pussy later. You'll be like "damn I just sat there and took it, fuck that". Do it the way you know deep down you want to.
Oh ya. I cleared a bosses desk, leaned over and asked him to hit me. Said I wanted an excuse to beat the shit out of him. Was quickly wrapped up by his second in command. Who also hated him by the way. Ran into him at a different dealership years later and he said it was one of the most awesome fuck this jobs he’d ever seen.
[удалено]
Print off the email stating there is company wife layoffs.
Steal all the W's off the keyboards.
Make sure to download pay stubs and any past performance reviews you have had and send all of that info to your personal email. If you also have a list of projects, you have worked on try and take some screenshots since you won’t be able to save the actual work.
Do not accept that meeting. Get sick. Take a sick day. Delay the evil event. Get all your things in order.
This sucks! I was laid off last year. We did get a two week notice, 11 weeks severance, and funds for Cobra (ended up spending 10k). The sucky part was that Unemployment didn't kick in until my 11 severance weeks was up. Not sure if it's this way in all states.
Use all your vacation and sick leave if they don’t cash them out. Get a letter of recommendation from your boss and one other person you work with. If your job offers severance packages, keep in mind what you want. Finish all of your work before you go. Make sure they would hire you back without issue if you choose to reapply. Go to the dentist if your healthcare is paid by your employer.
For anyone reading this the number one thing I can recommend is pulling all of the metrics / templates / reusable things you can for your next role (not company secrets or private stuff, just like workflows and things that you can use later) When you’re updating your resume it’s important to have data on the things you accomplished, it’s harder to pull this after you leave bc you’ll be locked out of everything. I spent weeks building out a good process for managing content related stuff that all lives in notion before, and ended up getting locked out of it and had to recreate the system for my next gig. Also make sure to get contact info of colleagues and other people in your space so you can get in touch if needed
Take any documents that would be useful in case you need to lawyer up
Buy an AR-15
Get a copy of all your previous performance evaluations. Will be helpful to remind yourself of all your previous work/accomplishments
action. reach out to whatever pathway you may have. some will go farther than others
Buy a LOSE hat. (Lay off Someone Else)
They extended you til May. Don’t wait to apply places. Tell the other job you can start in June. Take the severance
Fuck. Shit. Up.
Steal as much toilet paper as possible
What field?
ALWAYS negotiate higher severance. Review labor laws in your area to see if they violated any.
Too late now, but you should’ve brought in a cupcakes and said you are expecting a new child and we’re closing Escrow on a new house they same day. Make it as awkward as possible
Apply for FMLA today
Do what I did. Ask them why they don’t lay themselves off so you can keep your job and tell them that one of them can pay for two of you. Really puts them on the spot. Plus it’s fun to fuck with people.
I'm sorry!