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Ask HN: Laid off. Now what?

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Re: Ask HN: Laid off. Now what?

#51

Post by deathanatos »

Breathe. It's stressful as heck right now, but when you land a job, that'll all come off your shoulders.

Read everything. Check your mail: you'll likely be getting health insurance change notices there; read them so that you understand them. You might receive information about COBRA via snail mail too.

Update your résumé. Update your LinkedIn. Get contact info on your current coworkers now: they're in the same boat, and if they land an opportunity at a company with more than one open slot, they might be able to refer you. Network with past contacts, see if they have anything. (I found my current job through a former, now again co-worker.)

Re health insurance: you may be able to take COBRA. Research this, and pay attention to the materials you're given. For example, when I was laid off, we were required to activate COBRA, despite it being free (in my situation; this is does not necessarily apply to you).

> 80% of us would immediately be let go […] The severance pay was really small

I am not a layer, and this is not legal advice (for that, see a lawyer): If you're in the United States, and particularly if you are in California (but if you're not, you might still want to look, some states have similar laws; find out if your state does): Look up "WARN", the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act. My understanding is that it provides, in some circumstances a minimum notification of layoff. It depends, partly, on your company's size, and I believe also the layoff size, so you may or may not be eligible. It's a federal law, but some states (like CA) have a state version with more strict requirements. My understanding is that if you are covered by WARN in California, and your employer does not provide the required notice, they must make up for it by paying you. Again, I am not a lawyer, and this is not legal advice; for that, you should seek out a lawyer.

Re: Ask HN: Laid off. Now what?

#52

Post by jacobwg »

I can second many of the things already posted.

I would also emphasize that unemployment, if available, helps tide things over financially and you should file for it immediately. It takes a few weeks before the first unemployment check arrives, so the sooner that process starts the better.

When the startup I was working for shut down, I mistakenly waited a few weeks before applying in the hopes I would be able to find a replacement job quickly and out of some weird stigma against unemployment as "free money", instead relying on what was in the checking account in the meantime. As a result, finances became very tight while waiting for that unemployment to assist with rent. I learned #1 to apply for unemployment immediately, and #2 unemployment exists to protect you against this very situation, and your former employer has been paying unemployment taxes to cover this - get rid of any stigma against "free money".

Also, if you're looking for an engineering job, I have found the job hiring process to take a minimum of about 6 weeks. Consider it like a pipeline, continuously applying for positions, transitioning those into emails / phone screenings, and transitioning those into interviews, but keep feeding the pipe throughout the whole process. For me, that meant applying to companies for the first 4 weeks, starting to hear back from companies from week 2 through 4, then weeks 5 and 6 are for final interviews / negotiating offers.

For my past two job changes, I applied to 60 and 30 companies, heard back from 10 and 8, and got offers from 2 and 5, respectively. (the second time around I better targeted jobs that fit my experience than the first time around)

Re: Ask HN: Laid off. Now what?

#53

Post by pasbesoin »

quicklyfrozen wrote: post #47
pasbesoin wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You have a limited timeframe to select health care insurance continuation under COBRA. You should at least explore what the cost would be -- it may be better than what you can find on your own. Regardless, right now, you may be ok in the following regard, in the short term. But with the ACA on the chopping block, one thing that has been recommended already by... "those in the know" is to make sure you maintain contin…

COBRA will also end with the company's health plan, so it won't be available once the company fully closes down.

Hmm. Does it? That seems to be a loophole that would have been covered when COBRA was enacted -- the insurance company still being in business and able to ensure, with payments coming from the insured (or an administrative third party) rather than the employer.

I don't know, so I'm asking. If I were the OP, I'd double-check this point with respect to their state's laws and regulations as well as Federal law and regulation. (Sounds complicated, but probably has a final, simple answer that the local experts know.)

Re: Ask HN: Laid off. Now what?

#54

Post by palerdot »

contingencies wrote: post #44

Honestly my suggestion would be to move to another country where you are not effectively tortured like a caged animal about your own health and welfare and expected to work 355 days a year. If you are free of a partner/dependents you could try teaching English in some different exotic locales, that's easy stable cash in many places while you decide what you want to do / sort something out more stimulating / come up w…

Can you throw some light on the "teaching English in some different exotic locales" part? Like the countries/locations and how easy is it for someone to migrate (atleast temporarily like 6 months/1 year) and spend time like this?

Re: Ask HN: Laid off. Now what?

#55

Post by bootload »

"For some of you that may have experienced being laid off before, what were some of the first things you decided to do afterward? Do you have any advice or share any lessons learned?"

Minimise expenses.

Remember your worth is not to be measured by work alone. It will be easy to discouraged and spiral down. Don't. You are in survival mode now. Be flexible. If you have no choice, take jobs you might not like. The way you mentally approach this will give you an edge. In startup land, you are ahead of the curve if the economy tanks and more layoffs occur. Work hard. Luck favours the prepared.

Re: Ask HN: Laid off. Now what?

#56

Post by bootload »

memonkey wrote: post #25
crgt wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

All that's required for living paycheck to paycheck in the Bay Area is a willingness to pay exorbitant rent. The other stuff is a distraction from the real cash drain.

I don't know. I could easily spend $200 bucks a week on lunch and dinner alone.

"I could easily spend $200 bucks a week on lunch and dinner alone."

You can easily feed four people per week for the same amount.

Re: Ask HN: Laid off. Now what?

#57

Post by contingencies »

palerdot wrote: post #54
contingencies wrote: post #44

Honestly my suggestion would be to move to another country where you are not effectively tortured like a caged animal about your own health and welfare and expected to work 355 days a year. If you are free of a partner/dependents you could try teaching English in some different exotic locales, that's easy stable cash in many places while you decide what you want to do / sort something out more stimulating / come up w…

Can you throw some light on the "teaching English in some different exotic locales" part? Like the countries/locations and how easy is it for someone to migrate (atleast temporarily like 6 months/1 year) and spend time like this?

Not really as I haven't done it personally but there's loads of people doing it including many friends of mine in China and Thailand. A lot of them do it semi-legally. There are entire communities dedicated to this sort of thing, try searching TEFL or TESOL or similar. If you don't want the visa hassles you can do it online too, usually via Skype I think. The matching operators take a fat cut, 15% I heard.

Re: Ask HN: Laid off. Now what?

#58

Post by petervandijck »

Step 1. Drinks with colleagues who got fired too, stay in touch for job opportunities (X is hiring).

Step 2. Polish up resume.

Step 3. Contact your network (one by one, not mass), say "our startup is shutting down, looking for next job, any pointers?"

Step 4. Make a list of companies you want to apply for (regardless of whether they're "hiring", everyone is).

Step 5. Set up an account with hired.com and similar job searching sites.

Re: Ask HN: Laid off. Now what?

#59

Post by JSeymourATL »

1) Finances - understand where every dime is going, slash your expenses now.

2 ) Get your War Room ready - purge junk/clutter/distractions at your home work space.

3) Physcical Health - do keep up a daily work-out routine, get out of the house, keep moving...

4) Limit job boards surfing to 5 minutes a week, low hit rate here, huge energy drain.

5) Amp-UP Strategic Networking-- make a goal of connecting (live conversations) with 5 senior level executives/managers daily. That's 100 a month! This requires an unusual amount of focus and energy. Ultimately this process yields the best opportunities.

6) Food for Thought- Using Design Theory To Build A Better Life > http://dianerehm.org/shows/2016-10-03/using-design-theory-to...

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