Executive Summary

• How to reduce your odds of being laid off
• How to prepare for a layoff
• Essential steps to take during the layoff process
• Post-layoff success strategies

If you have not yet read Part 1: Is Covid Coming For Your Job?, available free to all readers, please click here to read it first.

Whether or not you perceive your job to be in imminent jeopardy, there’s a series of sensible steps to take now to defend yourself against becoming the victim of a layoff.

These steps will not only reduce your risk of being let go, but they’ll boost your performance, the value you offer an employer, and increase your satisfaction with your career. What’s not to like?

And should you be unable to avoid a layoff, you’ll be far better offer for having put these preparations in place beforehand. Especially now in this crazy pandemic era when millions of other sacked workers are suddenly competing for the few existing job openings out there.

What To Do While Still Employed

The best way to begin protecting the security of your job is to ‘first prepare for the worst’.

47% of US workers describe themselves as not prepared to handle a layoff. Don’t be one of them.

Emergency Fund

A layoff ends your income. Abruptly. So make it your first priority to build up a fully-loaded emergency fund. This should be a minimum cash reserve of 3-months worth of living expenses.

The average modern-day job search takes 5 months, so it’s wise to bump that cash reserve up to 6-months or more, if at all possible. It’s a heck of a lot harder to pursue the job you want if lack of funds is forcing you to take whatever job you can get to simply afford to eat and have a roof overhead.

Downsize Plan For Your Cost Footprint

Concurrent with your efforts to build up cash reserves, look at your current living expenses and ruthlessly identify areas where you can cut costs if need be.

Eating out, entertainment, club memberships, travel, etc are all luxuries you can easily live without.