layoffs

Everything you need to know about layoffs at your company, being laid off, severance, negotiations, and what to expect when your employer is cutting staff.

ask the readers: farewell cards when coworkers are laid off

I thought this would be an interesting one to throw out to readers to answer. Here’s the question: Is it normal to circulate company-sponsored farewell cards for coworkers who have just been laid off? I work for a smallish company (about 100 people) and last week there were 5 people laid off. This is a first […]

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can I ask my employer to lay me off?

A reader writes: I work for a major financial services company. I no longer wish to work for that company but don’t want to just resign. The company has been laying workers off and is planning more layoffs. I don’t want to feel like a sitting duck. I also want to leave and focus on a non-competing business that […]

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should I tell recruiters I was laid off?

A reader writes: I just graduated in December, and started work in January. The company lost a large contract, and my site had to lay off 20% of the work force, myself included. Any recruiter is going to ask why I left, and a friend of a friend who works for a staffing agency said […]

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should I warn my friend he’s about to be laid off?

A reader writes: About 8 months ago, we hired a new manager who moved very close to me and my family. I am his direct supervisor. Shortly after they moved here, we invited them over for dinner and we have since become good friends … dear friends, in fact. Our kids play together, we’ve been […]

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update from laid-off reader — being nice pays off!

Remember the reader from this post last month, who wrote in asking about whether she should send a thank-you note to her boss to thank him for the opportunity she’d had with him? She just sent in this update: I wrote to you on March 2nd asking if it would be proper for me to […]

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laying off a good employee

A reader writes: Due to the recent economic downturn, I am obliged to fire one of my best employees: he is proactive, his work is always sharp, he is a team player, and he is an evangelist of the vision of the company, not only in his department but in the entire company. Unfortunately we […]

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