Photo by Adolfo Félix on Unsplash
Before we dive into our tips for avoiding a layoff, it’s important to note that a layoff is not your fault as an employee.
It’s actually the opposite. In many circumstances, layoffs are a result of irresponsible hiring or mismanagement. When you’re an employee affected by layoffs, it’s easy to feel like it’s your fault.
In this article, we are going to give tips on how to try to avoid layoffs. However, it’s important to know that most of the variables are out of your control.
Why Layoffs Happen
In many circumstances, layoffs happen due to financial crises or uncertainty. Mass layoffs typically happen to help cut costs. Layoffs can also occur when companies are involved in mergers, acquisitions, and buyouts.
These are just a few examples of why company-wide layoffs happen that have nothing to do with employee performance.
Companies can always opt for different cost-cutting strategies, but layoffs tend to be the most direct solution to immediately cut off overhead expenses, for better or for worse.
17 Signs Layoffs Are Coming
Are you having a "gut feeling" that layoffs are just around the corner? Or maybe it's more than a sinking feeling in your buddy. Here are 17 signs that layoffs might be near. Keep an eye out.
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You hear chatter about "budget cuts" and "restructuring"
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HR and legal seem busier than usual
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Your manager starts asking you about what you do and asking you to document it
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Important projects are on hold
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When employees leave, they are not being replaced or there's a hiring freeze
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There's a merger or acquisition
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The earnings reports have consistently been off
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Many executives are leaving at once
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You're being kept out of the loop
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Your industry is experiencing rampant layoffs
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The company's finances seem to be in jeopardy
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The company's stock price has fallen dramatically
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Management is in the conference room—A lot
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Budget cuts are being made to essential things
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A round of layoffs has already happened
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Your workload shrinks, and you're removed from meeting invites
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You're not able to access your email or work files
6 Ways to Avoid Being Laid Off
While many of the reasons companies opt for layoffs have nothing to do with singular employees, their skills, or their performance, there are ways to try to protect yourself. One major way to protect yourself from a potential layoff is to research the company, its hiring trends, its history of layoffs, and its projections for the future.
Here are a few ways to watch for warning signs of a company that might be a little “layoff happy” in the future.
1. Know the Company
Get to know the company, inside and out. Ideally, you’d do this investigative work before accepting any employment offer. If not, it’s never too late.
Keep an eye on hiring trends, news items, and former employees. Find the answers to questions like:
- Has this company done mass layoffs in times of economic stress?
- Has this company enacted hiring freezes in the past?
- Has this company been hiring many new employees lately?
- Does this company have a clear direction for its financial future?
- How has the leadership in this company fared through other tough economical times?
- If this company has laid off employees, how did it treat them?
For better or worse, there are recent times of economic stress that can provide these answers. If your company has been “around,” you can research how it fared through 2008-2009. You can also research what personnel moves they made before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
If you have a LinkedIn Premium account, you can usually see a larger company’s headcount trend over the years. This is an extremely useful tool to determine how they hire and lay off employees, especially in relation to economic trends. Glassdoor is also a great tool to research the inner workings of an organization—especially how they interview, acquire, treat, and let go of employees.
Another useful resource is layoffs.fyi, which details the tech-specific layoffs that have happened since around March of 2020.
2. Interview With Job Loss In Mind
We know that this seems a little depressing, but screening for job loss during a job interview is extremely important.
This includes asking pointed questions about past layoffs, about the company’s plans for the next six months, and asking probing questions about the leadership. For example, when the tech industry was focused on cost-cutting measures and big companies like Meta (Facebook), Google, Amazon, and more started to do layoffs that should have been a warning sign to anyone interviewing there at that time.
Job candidates often become so focused on answering questions that they forget to ask questions. Find out how the organization treated people during the pandemic by asking pandemic-specific interview questions.
Save questions to ask throughout the interview at the end of the interview to make sure the company is reliable and that it values its employees.
3. Make Yourself Indispensable When Possible
While many layoffs will be out of your personal control, especially when working inside a giant company, there are things employees can do to reduce their chances of being laid off.
Make yourself as indispensable as possible. Since many companies tend to enact a “last in, first out” policy regarding layoffs, make sure to hit the ground running in your first 30 days.
Communicate your skill sets (even the ones that fall outside the realm of your responsibilities), raise your hand, and participate in any team-building opportunities.
If you work in a client-facing role, make sure your clients are in love with you, too. In these roles, employers may consider the impact layoffs will have on existing customer relations.
In short, make it your business to be known as a helpful and enthusiastic employee.
Pro Tip: This does not mean that you should take on others’ responsibilities or become the office doormat. Make sure that your core work always comes first and that nobody takes advantage of your eagerness.
Talk About Yourself
We talk about celebrating your success all the time here at Career Contessa. Why not celebrate them out loud? This doesn’t mean throwing yourself a pizza party when you land a new client or sending a weekly All-Team email to your coworkers detailing your victories.
Rather, it’s about creating space for wins, both big and small. It’s also about celebrating and giving credit to the team members who also played an integral part in any achievement. This is great for morale, motivation, and team-building. Know how to talk about yourself, and how to share your most positive character traits, especially in relation to your work.
Pro Tip: Make sure to share your wins that have a direct impact on revenue. If your work has a direct financial impact, make sure to communicate these wins. Whenever you can attach a dollar amount to your "worth" (we know, yuck) as an employee, it can serve as a shield against a layoff.
Be Solution, Not Problem-Oriented
You do not want to be the problem coworker, even in the most successful organization. As discussed in the last piece of advice, be the employee who races toward a solution rather than getting bogged down in problems.
Don't be known as the negative coworker.
When encountering issues or challenging times, be known for finding and presenting viable solutions. It can always be tempting to take a break, complain over email, and contemplate bashing your laptop against the well. Our advice? Try to skip these tempters and head toward a solution.
Especially if the company has announced upcoming layoffs or completed a first round of layoffs, it's essential that you start to showcase your problem-solving skills. Take on the assignments that others are avoiding, skip the intense conversations about promotions and additional compensation, and instead try to be the support your manager and company need.
Don’t Be Afraid to Leave
One “attractive” element of a layoff is, hopefully, a severance package that helps you get to your next steps. However, if the so-called “writing is on the wall” and layoffs seem near, don’t be afraid to start looking.
If you dislike your job or sense a toxic work environment unfolding, start your job search ahead of a potential layoff. This will give you a headstart in the case of an eventual mass reduction in staff.
