The Big Book of Job-Hunting Hacks by Editors of The American Library Association

Author:Editors of The American Library Association
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
ISBN: 9781510763494
Publisher: Skyhorse
Published: 2020-08-05T16:00:00+00:00

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PART 3

Moving Forward in Mid-Career

INTRODUCTION

Being fired or laid off is one of the most devastating events one can experience. For trauma, it ranks up there with divorce, loss of a loved one, and permanent personal injury. It is no longer that which happens to someone else. Most likely it will happen to you, too, when you least expect it . . . like in midcareer, when you thought your job would last forever. Today, it is no longer thirty years with one company, a retirement dinner, a goldplated Apple Watch, and a fat pension.

It goes by different names: fired, bounced, riffed, sacked, whacked, downsized, canned, rightsized, laid off, let go, or whatever it might be called tomorrow. Regardless of what the process is called, the result is the same: you are no longer employed, which means that going forward you will have no paycheck, no bonus, and no benefits. And the title Director of Marketing for Microsoft will be gone, too. Henceforward, you are just plain Mary Jones. When an employer decides that you are expendable, you are going, regardless of social status or length of time with the company. Not fair? Sorry. That’s just the way it works.

The most serious error one can make after starting a new job, whether it is an entry-level position or a presidency, is to assume the job will last throughout the work cycle. In reality, how long will the job last? It could be six days, six weeks, six months, or six years. In today’s workplace, all workers must prepare for the day when their jobs might end. For example, if you had been working with Ford in May 2017, you would have been facing a layoff because Ford had missed its quarterly revenue goal and subsequently announced that it was planning to cut 10 percent of its global workforce.

Many workers believe their jobs are secure and will last forever because of social status. They might think, “I’m a veteran. My employer won’t let me go.” Or “I’m a woman, and if they fire me, that’s gender discrimination.” Or “I’m sixty years old and they will never fire me and risk an age discrimination lawsuit.” Or “I’m African American, and if they lay me off, that’s racial discrimination.” Dream on! This is not your grandparents’ generation. Anyone is subject to being sacked on any given day for any reason.

How does it happen? Assume you have been on the payroll for two years. One ordinary workday, your boss calls you in for a chat. In the past, she has given you high fives for performance, but now she says your job has been eliminated because your division is not profitable. She has been ordered to reduce her staff by 50 percent. The company gives you a severance check and a folder of benefits, and you are escorted from the building by a security guard. You return home, seeking answers and wondering how you are going to survive.

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