Live data from Hacker News

Layoffs hit highest level for the month since 2003

challengergray.com

11–20 of 64 posts

Re: Layoffs hit highest level for the month since 2003

#11
post #4

Just the last 4-6 weeks I've started noticing a marked uptick in desperation in reposted linkedin "looking for work" posts. One was "I'll take ANY job to feed my kids" and another was talking about how they've been out of work 10 months and were about to lose their house. Another was saying they were about to get evicted and moving back in with their parents in the midwest. Things feel ominous out there. If it helps…

If tech folks are laid off who is renting that insanely expensive housing in the coastal cities?

Probably the 90%+ who still have jobs.

And, although the Bay Area is a bit of an outlier because geography, there are plenty of coastal cities where you can get to, not inexpensive by the standards of some regions, but not "insane" unless you absolutely feel you need to live in the central city areas.

Re: Layoffs hit highest level for the month since 2003

#13
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If tech folks are laid off who is renting that insanely expensive housing in the coastal cities?

It’s paid for with RSU’s

That's true too. A lot of people made a lot of money and they can now afford expensive real estate even if they're not making big bucks today absent lifestyle expansion and rational investments.

I'd add that I know a fair number of people who are not necessarily in coastal cities but are adjacent to them that have been exiting. They're mostly somewhat older and pretty comfortable or just have other things going on in their lives. The reality for some is that this isn't a terrible time to exit if you're not really loving things any longer and maybe have some other stuff you'd like to work on--or just retire.

Re: Layoffs hit highest level for the month since 2003

#14
This is what one-on-one relationships with our employers gets us

(where one-on-one means one worker's relationship to a chain of command, a department for compensation & benefits, ownership, board, and a network of investors & advisors coordinating on compensation, hiring practices, regulatory politics at a national level)

Re: Layoffs hit highest level for the month since 2003

#16
This is "AGI" at its finest.

I think we are at the point where tech companies have tested layoffs from unimaginable to on a regular basis and are willing to lay off more employees for the pursuit of this fantasy called "AGI" which actually means a 10% increase in mass global unemployment.

It doesn't matter if you are in tech, what matters is that your (tech) job is no longer safe.

Re: Layoffs hit highest level for the month since 2003

#17

Just the last 4-6 weeks I've started noticing a marked uptick in desperation in reposted linkedin "looking for work" posts. One was "I'll take ANY job to feed my kids" and another was talking about how they've been out of work 10 months and were about to lose their house. Another was saying they were about to get evicted and moving back in with their parents in the midwest. Things feel ominous out there. If it helps…

It makes sense to get any job if finances force you to, but... if you're not strapped for cash, would that really be the best way to spend that time? I have absolutely nothing against hard work, and if you want to keep yourself busy, go ahead. But I feel it's an ineffective way to spend forced downtime.

Honestly, if I were hit by lack of work, I would see how much runway savings I have and then try to either take some time off, to spend with family, do some low-budget traveling, learn new professional skills I wanted to learn, try to change the niche I work in and/or contribute to some open source project.

Re: Layoffs hit highest level for the month since 2003

#18

This is what one-on-one relationships with our employers gets us (where one-on-one means one worker's relationship to a chain of command, a department for compensation & benefits, ownership, board, and a network of investors & advisors coordinating on compensation, hiring practices, regulatory politics at a national level)

The alternative is unions correct?

Re: Layoffs hit highest level for the month since 2003

#20
post #15

Doesn't seem to agree with the data on https://layoffs.fyi/

That's because its a shit title editorialization: The article is actually saying that there hasn't been an October in two decades with this many layoffs, not that this October had more layoffs than any other month in two decades.
Post reply on HN