Have you been affected by layoffs?

Yes, officially. It was part of a ~4.5% to 5% total RIF, I wasn't happy, not doing my best work, one of "the remote guys" that was GIVEN to another group with an in-office culture and we just didn't gel.

So they didn't SAY it was performance related, (I've actually called and am listed in their system as "eligible for rehire", they say), but I know it was.

The time between "the call" and end date was long enough that I had my next job lined up and basically took off Wed-Fri of my last week before my next job started. Truth be told I actually accepted the offer of $nextjob before $laidoffjob's "the call" came. I knew it was coming, so _officially_ I can say I never looked for a new job as a result of layoff given the timing.

So to #3, yes and no. It hurt. It still hurts. It's a gut punch, so it's something I'll just have to live with. It gets better, but to date it hasn't gone away.

1 Yes

2 Yes, positively. I found a better job within a few months

3 Absolutely not. Imo, getting laid off doesn't come with a big social stigma. Professionally - yea, I sugarcoated it for recruiters. But everybody else treated it like I broke my leg: an unfortunate, mostly random occurrence, after which I may need some help.

Edit to add, for context: I got laid off from a pivoting startup in a hot market. I suspect my experience would've been different if I was hit in the layoffs over the past year.

yes, and I found a new gig within a week. I also refrained from making a linkedin post including a selfie of myself crying

I was at a company that got bought. Shortly thereafter they started laying people off. For some reason I wasn't. I was one of the last ones there, commuting to a mostly empty office not doing much. Obviously by that point I was already deep into a job search.

They did some shenanigans to try to fabricate reasons to let me go with cause, presumably to save money. It had absolutely no impact on me afterwards in any way whatsoever. I got a new job within a month or so. It was a much better job that I stayed at for way too long.

I feel worse about the people who were laid off before me. The company took everyone on a big team building type trip to a tropical place. I refused to go. After everyone got back from the trip they started the layoffs just before the holidays. I told that CEO straight to his face he was a scumbag. That people probably would have rather had their paychecks through the holidays than some vacation with their co-workers, would they have known.

And yet, somehow the person who didn't go on the company trip, and stuck it to the CEO was one of the last ones still around.

1. Yes, twice.

1a. My first job laid me off after 10 months, the CEO decided to relocate the company to the Caribbean for a tax break/shelter, which required hiring 70% local people. As the core company was small, the only people retained were the C-level, VPs, and their secretaries. Only 2 of 10 people from my office were retained (and forced to relocate).

1b. My Second job laid me off after 2 months. This small software company had split in two just before my arrival because the two lead programmers did not get along. I was placed with the disagreeable lead, who didn't want me on his team. When a newly degreed former employee, who left on good terms, stopped by one day looking for a job. My boss volunteered my position. The day before layoff I had talked to my leads boss about the good work I had been doing and the next project I would tackle, the next day they laid me off telling me they decided to go a different direction.

2. Yes, negatively. Both times.

3. Kinda some social stigma after the second layoff. I had relocated for both jobs, and didn't have a great support system either place. After the second layoff, recruiters/hiring managers treated me as I was the problem not just some misfortune.

I've experienced a layoff not related to performance, and it was definitely challenging. The job search was tough due to the stigma around being unemployed, but networking and honing my skills helped me bounce back. It's crucial to remember that layoffs can happen to anyone and don't define our worth. Sharing experiences and supporting each other can reduce the stigma and make recovery smoother.

In case someone is looking for open positions: https://www.ratherlabs.com/open-positions

1. Layoff are rarely performance related. There is too much paperwork involved with performance related firings and layoffs happen so fast and so wide it's usually done by lottery. You could be laid off for performance but no one is going to give you an honest answer either way. They still suck and you'll feel like you personally did something wrong. In the overall scheme of labor relations, it's not you it's federal law.

2. Yeah, so it made it a lot easier to network. I didn't have to schedule interviews clandestinely late at night, on lunch breaks, take time off. I could be out front about my objectives and be fully in charge of my career without worrying about blowback. 2 weeks of interview, 2 weeks of reference and background checks. I was collecting my next paycheck before unemployment even finished processing, LOL.

3. Layoffs aren't personal. They definitely can drive morale down for those that remain. And as soon as you have a steady, new job guess who start reaching out to you for referrals?

I wasn't laid off during the 2000s dot bomb, but I quit to finish school. I was not laid off during the 2009 GFC. I was definitely laid off during COVID19, because of COVID. At no point did I think it was even about me. It just sucks and those feelings of inadequacy are real. While my colleagues were feeling sorry for me I sent an email to every business card I've collected through the network events. I had 3 job offers by the 2nd week. You grow, get older, learn from your experience.

1. Yes, 3 times in the past five years and a half which coincide with my move to Canada (I’m now a citizen as of last week)

- Small startup, no more money

- Covid

- Company tried to grow too fast

2. I feel like it’s a call from the universe to focus on what I really want. At the same time, not having the stability and the experience and growth from a job where I stayed long term is, I think, affecting my resume negatively versus someone who stayed 5 years at one company and was able to grow and have a bigger impact.

3. I was really ashamed the first time and didn’t even ask for Employment Insurance as I didn’t even know I was eligible. I didn’t ask for help and it was a big mistake. This time I’m doing it differently, asking for help, introductions, referrals. It’s nerve wracking though. Having to reinvent yourself that often and applying to hundreds of jobs isn’t fun at all. I’m now applying every morning and take the afternoon to focus on my hobbies or everything else that’s good for my mental health. At least it forced me to understand that I’m not my job and my worth is not dictated by my job or my employer. I also stopped reading news/reddit because of the negativity around the current market. I know it won’t be easy but I don’t want to be reminded about it every day.

1. Yes, my entire group (about 100+ people) were laid off around a year ago

2. Not sure if it affected my search, but I did find a job that I enjoy more and that is less stressful, and I'm much happier now.

3. Not really. I don't worry about stigma, I don't even accept that the stigma in this case exists. Why should it? An entire group of people were laid off, not just me.

Because I could afford to, I took six months off before even starting to look for a new position. Aside from also recovering from cancer surgery at the same time, I really enjoyed spending a lot of time with my dog before she died, reading books I'd been meaning to read for ages, and slowly thinking about what I want to do next. It took me a month or so of looking to find a new job.

1. Yep. Very small company which made it all the more painful as my former colleagues have become close friends. The hard lesson? The bottom line makes exceptions for no one.

2. Yes and no. Emotionally, yes. I felt a lot more desperate and took negative signals in the process far more personally. No in that I think the market is chilly to begin with and so my layoff was not a contributing factor to how the process went.

3. Nah, if anything it socially improved my life. Got back into touch with a number of former colleagues/friends and had more time to shore up my personal life while going through my job search.

All in all this sucks, no way around it. But we're gonna make it through.

1. Yes. It sucks. It feels humiliating and stressful.

2. Yes. It gave me the kick up the arse that I needed to look for something outside my comfort zone.

3. No. Being fired may come with social stigma, but everyone knows that companies sometimes engage in untargetted bloodletting. There's no shame in that.

The hardest thing is the sudden brutality of it. You may not get a chance to say goodbye to people. It feels impersonal and you don't get a chance to defend yourself. Your ego is tied to your profession - as is your ability to provide.

Thankfully, I was part of a strong Trade Union. They were able to negotiate a very generous severance package, and they obliterated my non-compete. If you are at any risk at all of getting laid-off (and everyone is) then you should join your Union.

1 yes (company closure)

2 Not great short-term (got the first job I could), but turned out better in the long run (got a much better job few months after)

3 Not really: Was unemployed for under 1 month, and was honest about the interim job just being a means to an end while interviewing for better job.

Getting laid off is a part of life, happens to the majority nowadays. It's what you do (or can bullshit you're doing) between jobs that will count.

My response as someone affected by layoffs, but not because I was laid off.

1. No

2. N/A

3. N/A

But my workload increased drastically after this years cuts. My team has to shoulder additional responsibilities that are neither interesting or fun. I am in Switzerland and in hindsight I would've loved to be offered voluntary redundancy and take home the severance package.

1. Yes. I let my employer know that I would be going to graduate school and offered to continue employment part-time in the field in the area. They asked me to wait a week for them to plan. I was laid off 4 days later. Two days before layoff, they gave what I felt was an unjustified middling performance review due to two punctuation errors from a pre-existing template on a report sent to a client.

2. I would have preferred the stability and benefits the job offered, but life happens and I moved on. I was reasonably angry at the employer for about six years after. I've moved past it now. I threw myself into graduate school work and getting supplemental income for my small family.

3. No. Any employer who reads personal performance or morality into a candidate's layoff isn't worth the time or effort to engage.

Yes. Yes. Yes.

Biggest challenge I've seen is with stalled advancement, particularly for people with 10+ years of experience.

That said, those impacts are less severe (for ppl like me) these days as recent layoffs are more broadly recognized as resulting from executive and management failures.

That said, the general lack of a useful social safety net in the US can easily lead to chaos for US-based employees who are laid off.

Since everyone else is replying yes, I'll give the single non-useful response I guess.

1. No

2. N/A

3. N/A

1. I was laid off from a unicorn startup in January, along with about half the company over multiple rounds of layoffs.

2. I received multiple offers for data engineering / data management roles within 2 months.

3. No. All of tech deciding to do cuts is a great cover.

1. Yes, multiple times.

2. No at all.

3. Never expirienced social stigma. But my self esteem suffered. There is definetely a psychological damage of a layoff.

Yes, things were much better as a result, no.

Yep, laid off at the beginning of August after just over 2 months at the company. They staffed up to "totally redo the front end" and 2 months later cut us all loose, saying that they were not going to do the project after all. Normally I bounce back from things like this no problem, but in this super dry job market even the recruiters have stopped calling me for 3-month contracts that are 4 states away and require me to be on-site.

1. Yes

2. No, I was able to get a job lined up even before my last day

3. No. Employers understand layoffs happen, so I don't think it looks bad on a CV that you get laid off. Some people in my life put a stigma on not working, but I'm good at not letting their opinions affect me personally. I do think this stigma exists, in a sense of suffering as a virtue (so if you aren't working, you aren't virtuous). I think there's a valid concern from people uniquely in the US around having certain benefits lapse (health insurance being the biggest one), so a there's a ton of pressure to get back to work ASAP.

I worked 43 years for 3 companies, all in Sunnyvale, and all working with the intelligence community. At some point, all of them had layoffs but, fortunately for me, I was never part of any of them. That said, layoffs affect everyone whether or not you're one of them being let go. Obviously, the impact to those being fired, is immeasurably worse but to those staying, there is a psychological impact. First, there is loss of friends and colleagues with whom you've worked and may have close attachments. The abrupt destruction of that relationship can be quite depressing. Second, there is the unsettling confirmation that your company is unhealthy and that your job could be the next to go. So, yeah, layoffs do have a more widespread impact than just those losing their jobs.

1. No. Not because I'm a quite special engineer (I'm between the average and median) but one thing that I developed was a decent situational awareness in terms of career management to know the early signs when something is going south and I decided to move first (last 3 experiences I escaped from a mass layoff in a Tech Mid-Cap company, another Scale-up that needed to do layoffs and all stock is underwater and a hostile takeover that ended up with a 65% layoff).

2. I became almost obsessed with company performance in almost all aspects to see early signs of something off. Another thing is that I worked on all of my weaknesses to be more employable (I am a SysAdmin by craft, but I navigate in SRE/DevOps/Operations nowadays).

3. At the time that I was fired some time ago, in my internal circles I was completely open about it, and most of the folks were super supportive. For new job opportunities, I would never place this reason because companies have this kind of stigma and consider you as "undesirable" or "leftover".

All those times I created some excuse like I needed to change cities due to family reasons, the company closed the operation in my city, I changed country, I was doing consulting, etc. This is something, in my experience, that you never open to potential employees.

First because of the stigma already said, second this transfers your leverage in terms of negotiation because the other side knows that you need the work and it incites the other side of the transaction to lowball you financially speaking; and during the job they put you in more pressure to deliver.

Personally? I was made redundant 20 years ago, and since I was near the start of my career I used the time to try being self employed for a bit then found another job. I did not percieve stigma from having been made redundant, since at that time (end of the first internet boom), there were a lot of other people in the same situation. I think reasonable adults understand that "made redundant" is not a reflection on the individual.

However, in the current wave of redundancies, I've heard quite a few stories from other people about negative effects of redundancy combined with other life events. Being made redundant in the middle of moving house is particularly stressful and costly.

Yes, literally last friday. Signed up for a new job mid august, and last week, boom, they did lay off half the company. I just can't stand the fact that it isn't something you start thinking from one day to another, and you can take approaches to prevent this (still hire people 1 month before the entire layoff cof cof).

Idk, I'm just in the middle of f around and find out to see if its really a thing, most of the response from people seem to not care about. But the feeling itself its kind of weird for being a first timer for me!.

1. I have been laid off during the probation period (3 months in France). A new CEO was brought in roughly at the same time I was, and he was there to rescue a company that was apparently having difficulties (I only learned about this when I got laid off). All the people on probation period would be let go. I've learned later whole departments had been shut down. Last I heard, the company was still functioning, albeit with a reduced portfolio.

2. Yes, but in a very positive way. They were actually supportive and didn't kick me out the same day (though they could have, since it was the probation period). They said they'd keep me on board while I looked for a new job, but no longer than the maximum term of probation, which is 6 months. The HR lady set me up with a headhunter they used, and he brought me two very interesting positions, better paid than the one I was leaving. In the end, I went with a different one, even better paid, which still is my current position many years later.

3. Never exactly felt any stigma, probably because of what seem like quite unusual circumstances.

1) My company wanted to downsize and asked for volunteers. I volunteered for a nice package of almost 12 months of pay. They've forcefully terminated 1000+ this year in software, maybe more to go.

2) This gave me a chance to take a sabbatical and gives me a chance to leave IT. Been in the industry for 15 years. The pay is good but IMHO isn't fulfilling. Potentially doing something more tangible. Honestly I could even 'retire' if I want. I'm only 40 but I can work with my wife on her business, take some part time job for benefits...or anything else besides a 40+ hour grind sitting behind a monitor.

3) I haven't told many people I've left my job. My parents still think I work. This makes it a little hard to enjoy my time off, actually as I feel a little bit of guilt.

1. Yes, due to Covid -- more or less, at least it was a convenient excuse.

2. Absolutely not -- got a far better job offer 3 months after and took it: Better pay, more interesting projects, hands-on experience with big clients.

3. No, being unemployed for a short while does not carry social stigma where I come from. It does if you are unemployed for a longer period of time though.

Yep, laid off in the aftermath of the 2000 crash. Not immediately but the company didn’t get funding and cut almost everyone.

It hit me hard at first, but I was very young, just out of college, and adjusted quickly. The market was dead for a while, and I ended up being rehired after 6 months to sweeten the startup right before acquisition (for pennies on the dollar - this startup was seen as a success because it didn’t just fold).

The biggest aftermath is the mental shock of losing employment. I definitely got depressed due to the uncertainty of, well, everything. And when there’s a general glut of people searching, even being contacted by a prospective employer turns into a gamble. There’s a hopelessness that can set in that takes its toll.

I haven’t found much of a stigma from it, socially or professionally. There’s a pretty decent chunk of people who have been unemployed at some point due to a layoff.

No. But people in my area were laid off. This is usually not a huge deal in western europe because of the notice period. In Germany it's usually 3 months, so if the company tells you "You're out" (which is extremely unlikely btw, you are laid off either if a) you did something terrible, or b) company goes bankrupt), you still have 3 (full) calendar months to find a job and all. Since the 3 months notice period is quite standard in the country, when you apply for a job, they understand that you may join only 3 months from now.

The main (perhaps the only) reason I would never work for American companies is the lack of any laws that prevent them from firing me without notice. It's just so backwards.

With a high enough rate of layoffs, everyone is affected, even the people who kept their jobs - everyone has lower job mobility and less negotiating power than they’ve had at any point in the past 10+ years.

1. Yes, I worked for a travel company at the start of COVID. They went bankrupt within a month of lockdowns starting.

2. A bit. I took that job because they offered me a lot of money, and in the end I really enjoyed working there, I still hand out with people I met there now. But I knew I wanted to work at a startup, so once I knew we were going bankrupt I limited my search to startups I liked the look of.

3. No. I got another job pretty quickly, as did most of my co-workers.

Yes, no, no. Losing a job is very traumatic for most people, layoff or otherwise.

I ended up at a body shop shortly after which helped me gain some perspective.

I once had a startup fire me after only 6 weeks, for performance reasons, which were purely a fabrication. I'm not sure if that counts.

It was not a good experience for me, but I did not feel like it had any long term consequences.

I've worked at the same company for all 10 years of my career. The company has been through a few rounds of major layoffs that I've somehow survived. It has affected me in that, for one, I'm always afraid that if I ever stop being "indispensable" to whatever on-going projects that I'll be let go. For now instead I've been promoted to manager. The other way it affects me is it increases the work and responsibilities for those who stay on. We're constantly scrambling and understaffed so we always wish we had those people back. We have thin teams to support a giant product that a larger team of ex-employees wrote, while having to on-board the next round of cheap resources.

(1) Yes, one and a half times. - The one time was due to Corona. The company needed to shrink so my job was cut. - The half time was due to changes in priority for the company. The parent company was in the US and didn't know how to deal with the German labor rights so instead of laying us off my boss made things _very_ miserable for all of us until we quit.

(2) Yes, both times to the better. I learned to pay attention to all these KPIs they keep telling us about in the all-hands and also I am better now to judge companies before I join them.

(3) Nope, not at all.

1. I was a designer at a real estate tech company that was laid off the end of last year (along with like 90% of the company). I joined in June of 2022 and was laid off November of 2022. There was one round of layoffs in July of around 30%, and then another round in November of close to 90%. The company went from somewhere around 60 employees in January of 2022 to close to 350 by June of 2022, then to under 30 in November of 2022. Being in real estate tech, as interest rates rose, platform demand dropped and kept on dropping.

2. I pretty much immediately started job hunting and interviewing, and went through a 9 round interview to land another job (with a 10% pay cut) that I started the end of January this year.

3. Not really. It was a bummer because I was in the process of moving to NYC, and obviously needed to secure a job as quick as possible to secure an apartment. It also sucked to be laid off a few days before my birthday and only a month before Christmas. But luckily I landed something new pretty quick.

1. I've lost a job because the parent company merged with another company and started eliminating "redundant" positions. I've lost a job because of private equity shenanigans. I've been laid off a few times because of budget cuts when the economy was in the toilet. I've lost many jobs over the years and not once was it because of anything I could control.

2. Our culture is constantly telling you that if you can't find a job it's due to some kind of character defect. After a while you start to internalize that notion and it's super depressing. Being depressed and desperate for a job just makes the job hunt that much harder. Employers always want an explanation for the "gaps" in your employment history and "just trying to survive" is not an acceptable answer.

3. See #2

> Have you ever been laid off from a job for reasons that were not related to your performance?

Yes

> Did this affect your job search / career afterwards?

No

> Do you feel that being laid off from a job prevented you from recovering due to social stigma around being under / unemployed?

No

Now is the time to skim https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Product_life-cycle_management_.... (FYI: If you're making big bucks, you're only "worth it" in the growth stage and the early maturity stage. You're not "worth it" in the "Saturation and Decline" stage, unless you can figure out how to move within your company.

Basically, I was laid off when the product I worked on was transitioning from "Maturity" to "Saturation and Decline." The startup I joined 9 years earlier was bought and sold a few times, and I wasn't crazy about the company that finally purchased us. I smelt that severance packages were available, dropped a big hint, and was laid off about a month or two later. (The details are confidential, but let's just say that I was on severance at the beginning of Covid! It was wonderful because I had very young children.)

Initially I had so many interviews that I thought I was going to get a job before the severance ran out. If it wasn't for Covid, I probably would have too.

The bigger issue with a layoff isn't employability; it's how you approach looking for a job. What I realized by the time that I found my job was that:

1: Most companies hiring don't want to match my expected salary as a mid-career highly experience engineer that shipped industry leading products. They'd rather take a chance on cheaper, inexperienced engineers.

2: I don't have the patience for poorly-run companies. (Because I've seen it all and have very high standards.)

3: I needed to apply to about 50+ jobs.

4: The bar is much, much higher when you're experienced. It's much harder to try a new technology entering a job if you're coming in as experienced. (I have 20 years of C#, and I couldn't get into a Rust job that I wanted with the pay I wanted.)

5: The "stigma" of a layoff only hurts your chances with poorly-run companies. As long as you discuss it in terms of the product lifecycle and imply a "happy ending," no one will care.

After a false start with one company (see item #2,) I found my current job, which is awesome.

The very important thing to realize is that you're going to have to apply to a lot of jobs. I personally don't believe that ageism is real; but if you're mid career, the expectation is that you can perform at a mid-career level. If you're performing on-par with an early-career engineer, then you need to "pivot" and direct yourself to take advantage of your strengths.

1. Yes, once.

2. There was some impact, since I had to take a job at a lower pay than I wanted. There wasn't any impact on the search itself, though.

3. No.

1: Yes. Has happened 3 times in my career, most recently this past May.

2: Minimally. I was asked for the reason for my departure, and I was transparent as I could be, indicating what I knew and the circumstances. People were curious about it, but then again, its not relevant to finding new work. I will say that I found that multiple potential employers concluded successful interviews with unrelated programming tests. It felt like a set of coffin problems[1], that older folks like me, not trained in CS, but writing code for 40+ years, would not do well on.

This is a huge red flag. I actually had someone tell me that I 'needed to know how to program' to do the job I'd applied for, even though I have a public documented history of programming and software development/engineering, have developed and shipped code for decades, for research, products, patches, ...

That impacted search a bit.

3: There's not much of a stigma these days. Your self worth is not tied up in your job. Your value isn't either. You can take time to decompress, retool, think, train, research.

Put another way, if an employer thinks its a problem, you might want to steer clear of that employer. Bring the conversation quickly to a close, amicably, so you don't waste time and create bad feelings.

On jobs in general, employers generally are their to please and profit their owners. Understanding all their actions in terms of this (HR is there to protect the employer, etc.) can help you separate your sense of self worth from the position or company.

[1] https://www.reddit.com/r/math/comments/gxpoyo/soviet_coffin_...

I worked for a consulting company that was acquired by a much bigger fish. About a year and change after the acquisition was finalized, I was laid off.

To be completely fair to the company (not that they particularly deserve it) I was a very ripe target. I was working on a team which basically did POC development to help with sales - we'd do some initial legwork and demos on various ideas, some directly related to a potential client's project and some based on internal ideas. As a result the percentage of time I was billing to an actual client was very low (but this was by design).

The net result for me was frankly fantastic. I got out of an unfavorable environment, got 6 weeks of severance with some extra money thrown in for COBRA (which I didn't end up needing, so that was just free cash). I had a job lined up almost immediately due to some lucky circumstances, and that was at a brand new consultancy that was still in the spin-up phase, so I essentially got a 6 week paid vacation during which I had no stress about finding the next gig.

No illusions here from me that getting laid off is even close to always being a good thing, I can imagine a dozen ways in which it could have been horribly stressful and financially ruinous, but I look back on getting laid off very fondly :)

I was laid off from a FAANG company I won't name on January 20th. I was, however, given the opportunity to look for a new job internally for three months. Some people got cut off hard, a small number got either 3 or 6 months before their final date. Luckily I found an internal position in a different group. There were few choices, I it was just two positions I had to choose between. But I got to see my layoff package - it was good, I have been here a long time, but I have been through the job hunting process too many times before to be very eager to do it again.

I'm sure a lot of HN readers would tell me I should have taken the package and found a new job elsewhere, but I've worked at startup companies before and I don't think the grass is any greener out there. And perhaps unsurprisingly my new team was happy to have me aboard since hiring has been very limited lately compared to my company's historical norms.

I've been flat-out fired before from other jobs, although not with cause, and it never really affected my job searches before. I think most people believe that their interviewing process works and having seen a lot of smart people come and go I don't think getting either fired or laid off necessarily says anything about anyone. It might, but you need more than that one data point.

I don't feel like I've every faced any social stigma around being either fired or laid off. People have always been pretty sympathetic and supportive towards me, for which I'm grateful.

1. Yes, twice.

2. My first layoff actually helped me in several ways. First, because I was laid off from a place where the owner did his best to have a toxic, bullying environment. Second, because I got a new job pretty quickly, much better paid, with a much better environment and much higher impact.

My second layoff was much more stressful. I got to say goodbye to a company that was very nice to work with but that had money problems, in a period in which finding a new job was harder. I did get one fairly quickly. Lower pay, but still ok, potential to be very interesting, although we're not there yet.

3. I did not suffer from social stigma directly, but I suffered from the fear of social stigma.

> 1. Have you ever been laid off from a job for reasons that were not related to your performance?

Yes. Only once, and it happened in March as a part of a cost cutting exercise.

I was working at the company - a product startup - for 2.5 years.

> 2. Did this affect your job search / career afterwards?

No. I went back to my previous employer where I worked for 6 years, they were gracious enough to welcome me back.

The only thing that bothers me at times is the pay differential - I had to take a paycut moving back to my older org.

> 3. Do you feel that being laid off from a job prevented you from recovering due to social stigma around being under / unemployed?

To an extent, yes. The initial days were the hardest as I thought I was untouchable as an employee - I've been a top performer for a majority of my career - so being laid off was definitely a shock.

It took a few weeks to get over it but it was fine as soon as I had a job in hand.

Yes i was laid off with 20 other people.

Got 6 weeks worth of salary, managed to find a job within a month or so, so it wasnt too bad, but i only got the same salary (i didnt ask for more since i needed a job :D, its different if one does not need a new job)

It didnt feel good but i shacked my feelings of and moved on pretty quickly.

Most of my friends in tech are mostly on sabbaticals. On occasions they pick up some work.

For the past 5 years I have been working only freelance or through my own agency. Naturally, there are often times between gigs, as is the case now. The main difference is that I now want to enter full-time employment and leaving freelancing behind.

I am definitely struggling with the narrative going into the world of full time employment, as it seems to be the expectation to have unbroken employment records.

1) I've been laid off once. I got caught up in the massive layoffs during the MCI/Worldcom fall back in 2002. It was completely not performance related, and my entire division was let go at the same time.

2) The layoff itself was not a blemish, as far as I knew. The big issue was the simultaneous dotCom bubble burst. There was a huge glut of guys like me looking for work, and the jobs at the time just weren't there. What was worse, I was going from making a pretty high salary to applying for jobs at Blockbuster just to try and make ends meet. No one wanted to hire me because they knew it was just a temporary thing and I'll probably leave at my first opportunity.

3) No social stigmas beyond what I mentioned above. It was a long recovery though. I couldn't find anything for almost 2 years until some friends started their own company and brought me on board. I was only making about half of what I'd made previously, but I was happy to be working.

This was definitely the lowest point of my life. Couch crashing with friends and living in my mother-in-law's basement. Before this, I was turning down offers because I liked my job. This event severely humbled me, and now I'm absolutely terrified any time I see that my job might be in danger.

3)

1. Yes, within the last 24 months.

2. Yes. Either you bring it up and people think you must be low performer, or you don't and you feel like you're deceitful.

3. Yes.

Felt like a career-ending failure.

Took about a year to get over it emotionally.

Good came of it as it pushed me to finally become serious about self-employment after years of inaction.

> Have you ever been laid off from a job for reasons that were not related to your performance?

I haven't been laid off, but we did have some small layoffs this year. After the second one, while no specifics were stated about who was laid off, managers were told the selection criteria included looking for knowledge overlap and seeing who could be lost without losing knowledge. That basically explains my team: the one person we lost had fairly deep knowledge in only a single system, while two others had shallower knowledge in the same system and knowledge in other systems. I'm sure knowledge depth wouldn't have stood out in the performance review documents HR has, so the person we lost probably would have looked redundant to them, even though I suspect that person was trying to position themselves as indispensable.

My last company did a speed run from "we need to build competency in house" to "internal employees are costly and outsourcing will help us reduce cost" in just 3 years.

I was called to a meeting room and told my role was redundant. The HR somehow felt that I would break down into tears. I was calm. He asked if I already had another job offer. I didn't and I had to tell him that breaking down wasn't going to help either of us in the discussion.

To make matters worse this happened just as COVID news started hitting the waves. That is end of Feb 2020. Most of the companies had stopped interviews. And then in March shutdowns started. I was out of job between a raging pandemic. No idea when things would open back up. And everyone saying the economy was done and there might not be a job even if things started to open up.

2 months later, in May - at the height of the pandemic - I got an opportunity but came at a cost. Because I was so afraid of not having job - I accepted a 20% pay cut. It took me 2 years to finally get back to 2020 pay level.

There is a social stigma of being "laid off" or rather "fired". Not many people appreciate that companies can lay off people for things unrelated to performance or other issues. Some are understanding if the lay off hits the news cycle. But if you are working with a smaller company that never happens.

[delayed]

1. Unfortunately yes, at the beginning of the month.

2. Not sure, still searching.

3. As of yet unsure. I'm grateful that no one in my social nor professional circles appears to feel this is a stigma -- most people have expressed sincere regret when hearing about it.

Since I'm in the US, the immediate impact was health insurance, which will run out at the end of this month. COBRA is so expensive that it isn't a real option, so I will have to figure that out, as I take a daily medication that I rely on. Unfortunately, not one of the Obamacare plans I found covers both the medication and the prescribing physician, which is really shitty.

Otherwise, though, the period of rest (working on personal projects and applying to jobs notwithstanding) has been welcome. I'm lucky to have gotten some severance that has been affording me the time off without yet having to tap into my savings.

1) yes 2) yes, the experience from the job I was laid off from helped me get a new job. 3) not at all