Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Ask HN: Laid off folks, are you getting hired?

news.ycombinator.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

181–190 of 479 posts

Re: Ask HN: Laid off folks, are you getting hired?

#181

Post by timr »

Yoric wrote: post #165
metadaemon wrote: post #153

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I guess if you are used to the security (or lack thereof) and coast-ability of large tech companies, you might be inclined to stick to the big names. However, I've recently discovered how fulfilling startup work is. Ironically, I feel more secure in my current role at a startup than I ever did at big tech. That's thanks a lot to the industry I'm in, but regardless senior devs are missing a lot if they completely disc…

Happy for you. Unfortunately, with VC money currently drying off, I know of many startups that are laying off. And I'm not talking about 10% of workforce layoffs, but more around 30%.

Just a word of advice for readers who are working at a startup: you will never be wrong by getting as close to the money as possible.

If you are at a startup and working on support tools or platform infrastructure or whatever, maybe you're indispensable. But you'd still be better off if you were doing support tools or platform infrastructure that involves revenue.

(The obvious corollary is that if you work at a startup that doesn't make money, you should find a way to make money, or move to a startup that does make money. I feel like a lot of engineers don't know this.)

Re: Ask HN: Laid off folks, are you getting hired?

#182

Post by twosdai »

MarkMarine wrote: post #146
michaelbuckbee wrote: post #106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Woodworking is a popular hobby with developers; at some level at least they're both about creating things. The "eventually" part is a nod towards retirement and then joking not having a choice.

I enjoy woodworking because it's something I can do with my hands that has a definite beginning and end, unlike most software which is often never really done. I find the completion of these whole projects very cathartic.

I think I've heard this exact response from other developers who turned to wood working. It's a common plus side.

Re: Ask HN: Laid off folks, are you getting hired?

#183

Post by Yoric »

kypro wrote: post #139
nivenkos wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It depends on your company, but the statutory minimums are awful. You get a minimum of 2 week's extra pay if you have over 2 years service, and Job Seekers' Allowance is about 77 quid a week - so imagine living on less than $500 a month. Healthcare access (via the NHS) is unaffected, you might be able to get free prescriptions too. But in general it's terrible. As always in Europe you either want to be an ultra-rich…

> As always in Europe you either want to be an ultra-rich landowning aristocrat (little to no property tax, inheritance tax, etc.) or very poor/unemployed (e.g. a refugee) so you qualify for state housing, etc. - work does not pay. I just left an inappropriately long comment saying, in effect, actually the same thing. The US isn't perfect, but if you want to work you're generally able to move up the economic ladder e…

> The US isn't perfect, but if you want to work you're generally able to move up the economic ladder easier from what I've seen.

According to recent Nobel prizes in economic (Duflo and Banerjee), moving up the economic ladder has degraded so much in the US that it's currently lagging slightly behind Europe.

Their study dates back to ~2018, though.

Re: Ask HN: Laid off folks, are you getting hired?

#184

Post by slackfan »

Company I was with went through a very strange aquistion for the brand, with a layoff of all of the staff in November. Since I was leadership -- ended up working my network to land my entire technical team at a different company by mid-December, which worked out, so seven people hit the new year with fresh jobs. As for myself - had a few bites via my personal network but decided to strike out solo and build something from scratch for now, because I can afford to.

Re: Ask HN: Laid off folks, are you getting hired?

#185

Post by echelon »

tayo42 wrote: post #150
echelon wrote: post #32

Firstly, I'm really sorry to everyone who has been laid off. It's such an awful experience, and I'm sorry you're going through it. You're not alone, and everyone is cheering for you! Take care of yourself. You'll get through this. The macro environment looks to be improving, and companies are mostly doing this to put downward pressures on salaries or because they overzealously hired during the pandemic. There are lot…

Do you have contact info?

In my profile, sorry!

Re: Ask HN: Laid off folks, are you getting hired?

#186

Post by elif »

ericmcer wrote: post #21

I took 8 months off voluntarily, just started applying again last week (full stack dev): 10 applications, 2 rejections, 1 initial phone screen Anecdotally I see very few junior/low level positions open, most jobs seem to be senior+. Salary ranges are all a bit higher than I remember them being 3 years ago. I am still a long way from being scared enough to take something I don't like or that doesn't pay well, still op…

i'm curious, from what you can tell, has anyone cared about your voluntary break or is it all the same to them?

i quit/retired about 4 years ago and often wonder if i applied places how much it would be held against me wanting to have control over my life like that.

Re: Ask HN: Laid off folks, are you getting hired?

#188

Post by altgeek »

mynameishere wrote: post #92
kentosi wrote: post #53

New York here. Been just over 2 weeks since getting laid off. I'm getting calls from recruiters and have interviews lined up, but it's been tough.

That doesn't sound tough.

Agreed. "Tough" was finding a tech job after '00 dot-com bust or the '08-09 financial crisis.

Re: Ask HN: Laid off folks, are you getting hired?

#189

Post by anthomtb »

barbazoo wrote: post #75
moffkalast wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Every programmer eventually becomes a woodworker, whether they like it or not.

Some of them become blacksmiths as I recently learned.

I worked with one developer who became a master electrician. He was experienced and intelligent but obviously burnt out on software. And he sure seemed happier when I ran into him a couple years after making that career transition.

Re: Ask HN: Laid off folks, are you getting hired?

#190

Post by renewiltord »

anon8056 wrote: post #91
gaws wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I ended up with two offers by the end of January, one from a growing startup and the other from a mid-market company with a conservative business model. Given the slowdown in the market, I'm thankful to have found something so quickly. Which one offer did you take?

Call me crazy, but I went with the startup. It's been a while since I felt like my work had any real impact on the business and I thought it could at this startup, so I'm taking the risk.

Great choice, mate! Always glad to see HN back to its roots of agency and adventure. Good luck!
Post reply on HN