Layoff Coming? 3 Things To Do About It.

In an economic downturn, and when most companies face a decline in business, most managers and company owners see employees as a big cost. The temptation to lay off staff in order to cut wages in order to save the company money is there. There’s no denying it.

The problem with this solution is that once you consider the direct and indirect costs of a layoff — outplacement, unemployment benefits, re-hiring and training new employees, layoffs of professional employees can end up costing a company between 150 percent and 250 percent of an employee’s salary and rarely improve financial results.

Often times, you will read how workers who have been laid off have seen it coming and many even express a relief from finally getting to what was inevitable. It’s times like this when employees should step up and try to do something about the problem with the company. There are generally some key things that employees can do to potentially avoid a looming layoff:

1) Suggest Alternatives: Request a meeting with your manager and bring to him your concern and data showing the business benefits of thinking differently about alternatives to layoffs. At least it’s now on their radar screen, and the earlier the better before layoff decisions have already been made. Most managers may not be focusing on laying employees off until company heads request that this be done so letting your manager know about your ideas gets those alternatives on his radar.

2) Get Other Employees to Help: There’s power in numbers. Get together and talk to other employees about it and talk about alternatives. You may be able to get other employees to agree to certain alternatives that you can take to management. No manager likes to lay people off, but unfortunately too many still think they have no choice. You’re sharing options that make solid business sense. And while some job cuts may still be necessary, there may be fewer.

3) Mangagers Need to Think “Out of the Box”: Other than laying employees off, there are a number of alternatives that can be implemented which will still reduce costs, increase revenue, and reduce the negative effect of layoffs. It’s key to get a sense for how much you’re trying to save, sometimes laying off employees may be too drastic for the amount the company needs to save. Go to your team, tell them what your goals are and ask them to come up with ideas for solutions. Give them some options. Suggest reducing schedules and salaries, job-sharing, or adding unpaid vacation days to the calendar.

Companies like FedEx and Dell have used this approach and they have been praised for it. Your company can join this movement and break out of the traditional approach to cost savings which simply makes good business sense, not to mention helps more people keep their jobs.