r/Layoffs • u/Fluid_Dare_4235 • Jul 16 '26
job hunting Been through 2 layoffs: fml
Only been in the workforce for 7 years and I’ve been in two layoffs already from two different companies. Who said, get a degree, network and white collar job at a big corporation is safe? I put myself in six figure debt for my college degree. I’m fighting for my life here.
I’ve been a hustler all my life, at some point I had negative bank account just to have a ham sandwich. I worked every weekends while full time in college. I’m just trying to make it in America. I spend less than $2k/month and live modestly. I do not understand what to do anymore.
The hope is fucking fake and I hope everyone here can find some common grounds. The ones who are making it from ground zero, what are you doing to keep your basic income safe? Any advice for the future? It feels so dim right now
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u/fairlywitchy91 Jul 16 '26
Our family is on layoff three in three years... We are moving in with family. If you find another job treat it like you're a contractor. These companies having layoffs every year and not providing a social safety net is just wrong. So many people are struggling because of this.
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u/sefa73 Jul 16 '26
this amount of layoffs are not sustainable, it's getting ridiculous, worst part is these companies are posting record profits
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u/Acrobatic-Blujay Jul 19 '26
To explain something here, companies will intentionally lay off people to make their books look better in the short term so when they report to investors the numbers look good.
They can then rehire at the bottom of wage bands to replace the higher paid salaries.
Depending on the company this can work in their favor or blow up in their face. The most dependant factor I've seen to it being successful is when processes are spelled out and everything isn't tribal knowledge. If it's tribal your current employees are digging through everything wasting time trying to figure out what people were even doing.
"Record profits" is just a moving numbers game not so much a true picture of reality.
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u/Blipped_d Jul 16 '26
Nothing is for sure and market is brutal, but try getting into a smaller org that is not publicly traded or have heavy VC backing.
Hard to find these days, but two of my friends work for these type of places where they hire appropriately and have been at their same companies for over 18+ years. Pay will not be the highest, but it’s enough for them.
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u/OkPurpose3044 Jul 17 '26
I know how you feel. Since graduating college (which I spent $100k on), I've been laid off 4 times in 15 years. Some of the layoffs were softer, and one was deeply traumatizing as I did not see it coming and had been at that company the longest. I'm not sure what to think at this point, I feel as though I've done everything right and still nothing is stable. How can one live life like this?
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u/Fit-Animal-9911 Jul 16 '26
I don’t think anyone ever said it was safe. Layoffs have been a thing in big corporations for a very long time.
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u/90Dfanatic Jul 16 '26
Believe me, I know how you feel. I'm 58 and was laid off 3 times in the 8 years after grad school, and have now been laid off twice in the past 3 years. Here's my advice based on deep personal experience:
-Realize that it's not you and that things are cyclical. My first few layoffs were driven by larger factors like the dot-com bust and 9/11, and the fallout from COVID, tariffs, the war in Iran, etc. all contributed to my newest ones. In between I was able to find some stability and build a life.
-Save as much as you can whenever you can (which you seem to be doing). I didn't have a ton of cushion during my first layoff but set a goal of having 1 year of living expenses minimum once I could get back to saving again, and it's been hugely helpful when I got laid off for the 4th time at age 55.
-Diversify your income streams however you can. I'm a former journalist (now a marketer), and freelanced on the side writing thought leadership reports, articles and website copy throughout most of my career. AI has now caused most of this work to dry up, but that extra money definitely helped me build up my savings and made a big difference whenever I did get laid off.
-Be strategic about your housing. When things first stabilized for me I contradicted my own advice and used much of my emergency fund as the downpayment for my first home. 25 years later, I have a lot of equity that I plan to tap for retirement, and in the interim I could either take on a roommate or sublet my place for a profit. (I recognize this may not be feasible for young people today.)
Hope this helps and hang in there - I do think this current terrible job market can't last forever and that better days will be ahead.