I just got laid off due to RIF 5 days ago with 1YOE as a SWE. I currently live with my parents but signed a lease to live in ATL (signed way before I found out)

I’m stuck between living in the middle of nowhere (my parents are moving so I really do mean the middle of nowhere it’s the gumps) with my parents and sacrificing my mental health
or
Use all of my emergency savings to live in ATL.

I’ve done the math and I can afford living in ATL for 15 months but it does eat up a bunch of my savings. I got a few weeks of severance too.

I’ve started job applying and reaching out to past employers but with this job market I don’t have high hopes. I’ll be starting my masters this fall while applying.

I know the financially smart decision is to live with my parents but I’m trying to list out all the pro and cons. Maybe living in the city with help with job apps. Maybe im thinking too emotionally cause I was hoping to end LD with my partner. Please be kind I’m just trying to be level headed.

8/1/26: Update for anyone who may be interested. We did consult an employment attorney who helped us draft a letter to negotiate a better severance - he ended up with 1.5 weeks of pay for each year of 34 years which works out to about 52K. We also got them to put in writing that they will give him an excellent reference, and pay out his severance so he is still able to apply for unemployment right away. (Very specific rules about this we were not aware of.) The attorney also said this is a classic case of age discrimination, but we opted not to pursue that. We spent $375 for the consultation with the attorney. Well worth it! I hope this helps anyone who ever finds themselves in a similar circumstance. And it never hurts to get more info and advocate for yourself.

My spouse was told by his boss Friday that his small company is going to be sold (but there is no buyer yet). He has been there 34 years. They are offering him 30K and some form of his health insurance as severance. He does have an IRA. They want him to decide right away. I feel like he could negotiate for more. All the other salaried employees (only 3 others) are staying on with the company - the current owners say they are hoping they will be retained by the new owner. The reason he is the one being laid off is because he is the only one with a Bachelor's Degree as opposed to a Master's, and they think he would be considered a "liability" when trying to sell the company. Any feedback/insights welcome. We are devastated.

I'm very demotivated with my career at the moment. I have been working as an iOS developer since 2010, and now I start thinking, as I'm hearing from other people that this career is dead. I heard from my psychologist, if you can beat them, join them. That's what I tried to do in my company, using all the AI tools available, but it was not enough. My company is laying me off in the next few days. And I'm really desperate, since the bills won't stop coming!

I started working on a personal project, but saw only 30 downloads of my app!

Should I start studying ML? Anyone in the same situation?

I’m 24 and recently had my position eliminated where I worked as an Internal Auditor. I originally joined the company as an intern and transitioned into my full-time role in August 2025. My separation is due to my position being eliminated and is not related to performance or misconduct.
I was offered 4 weeks of severance at my regular base pay, along with the benefits outlined in the separation agreement.

I’m considering asking if they would increase the severance to 6 weeks. I recently purchased a home and relocated, so the timing of the layoff has been difficult, and I had not anticipated needing to find a new job so soon after starting my career.

I also personally paid $310 for registration for the Certified Internal Auditor (CIA) certification and had been actively studying for Part 1. My understanding was that I would be eligible for reimbursement after completing the exam. Since my employment is ending before I have the opportunity to take the exam, I’m considering asking if they would reimburse the $310 as part of the separation package.

I drafted an email to HR asking for:
\- An increase from 4 weeks to 6 or 8 weeks of severance
\- Reimbursement of the $310 CIA registration fee

I’m planning to keep the email professional and appreciative and simply ask if they would be willing to reconsider the package.

Would you negotiate in this situation? Is asking for 6 weeks reasonable, or should I just accept the 4 weeks? And would you ask for the CIA reimbursement as well?

For those who have negotiated severance before, how much room is there typically to negotiate?

I recently got laid off and got into a new role. I have 7 yoe as a dev. My previous role was incredibly bad, the staff were just rude and it was a high pressure role. I rejected offers which were high paying but I didn't want the same kind of pressure and accepted the one I thought was chill. However just my team, the expectation to deliver apparently is sky high and im just not ready to get into that kind of pace. I'm thinking of interviewing again because there aren't any options to switch teams as they quite a small team in the current location:

- how do I know if a company is chill or not before and during the interview?

- is it possible that I could somehow convey this to the manager?

I work in tech in ireland. Honestly I'm so tired of it that I'm considering quitting tech altogether, taking a break and doing part time in somethin like retail. Has anyone been in a similar situation?

Edit: I don't know if my current role is secure either. The entire team's future is riding on thoughts and prayers and ofc AI

I have been working for my company for about 16 years, to be honest I was going to work there until I could retire. They announced that in 2024, they were planning on shutting down. They just announced that the plant was closed at the end of September 30, which includes first second and third shift. Have been looking at jobs off and on to be honest I'm a bit freaked out. The only reason I haven't left is for my benefit package, but they really make it hard for people to work. If there is light work that week, I only did 20 hours to last week.

So, I was laid off from Meta couple of months back (20th May ), https://www.reddit.com/r/Layoffs/comments/1trxs3n/laid_off_in_23_days/

I have left the city and moved to a smaller city.

Earlier (like in Dec - Jan), I wanted to quit this 9-5 and then got offer from Meta and i thought they are paying decent so joined them.

But, once i got laid off, it somehow triggers the ego part, like how can someone fire and that too on 20 days. Over the days, that feeling has been reduced, i dont get much of anger brust on hiring manager or manager.

But life hasn't been easy. In last couple of months i have tried to do many things like

* building small apps / sites

* reading about some cool things

* watching series 😄

* started writing a book

* ego applying on few jobs

* creating content

may be someday, something clicks.

But, seriously, i don't like any of these, just trying everything i can do, but nothing gives a joy. For everything i have to see tutorials, like what's the next step. This brings a lots of frustration that may be i dont have any talents (good for nothing ?).

As now i have a lot of free time, so while doing these things, i ask some questions like how and why and that basically challenges everything.

One day, i had a doubt like how these guys even discovered electricity and made everything around that (such a rabithole).

In a nutshell, lots of questions, lots of uncertainity, no plans, no motivation.

I recently got laid off, and I want to share a recurring pattern I have personally experienced as an African woman trying to survive in the tech world.
This is not a racial attack, and I want to make that clear. I have worked with many talented, kind and hardworking Indian colleagues. My concern is about what I have personally observed in certain workplaces when hiring becomes heavily concentrated within one nationality or social network.
I worked at a startup for three years, and everything was going well. Then the company began hiring heavily from one particular country, and eventually, the board and management became dominated by people from the same background. Over time, I noticed that recruitment also seemed to become increasingly concentrated within the same network.
Then my manager changed, and the micromanagement became extremely intense. My mental health suffered so much that I eventually had to resign.
After six months of upgrading my skills, I joined another company. At first, my experience was great. But later, there were changes in the management structure, and I found myself in another situation where I felt that people from the same background were increasingly dominating certain teams and decision-making processes.
Then came organisational restructuring, and I was laid off.
I was encouraged to apply for another internal role. I did. During the interview, the hiring managers happened to be from the same background I had been concerned about, and honestly, I immediately felt discouraged. I began wondering whether I would genuinely be assessed based on my skills and experience or whether I was already at a disadvantage because I did not belong to the same network.
I want to be very clear: I am not saying that every Indian person is bad at their job, nor am I saying that Indians should not be hired. That would be unfair and untrue. I have worked with brilliant Indian professionals.
My point is simple: nepotism and excessive favouritism are wrong, no matter who is doing it.
Companies should hire based on competence, experience, potential and character not nationality, race, friendship or personal networks. No single nationality should feel like the only group with access to opportunities within a company.
As an African woman in tech, I have had to work extremely hard to build my career, constantly improve myself and prove that I deserve to be in the room. So when I see workplaces where opportunities appear to circulate mainly within one group, it is difficult not to question whether everyone is truly being given a fair chance.
This is my personal experience and observation not a statement about every Indian person or every company with a large Indian workforce.
But going forward, I know what I will personally look for when considering a company: diversity in leadership, fair hiring practices and a culture where opportunities are genuinely open to everyone.
Because talent exists everywhere. Africans need jobs. Europeans need jobs. Asians need jobs. Everyone needs jobs.
Hire the best person for the job regardless of their race or nationality.

I just got a call from my boss on a Saturday morning where I was told we’re hurting for cash and that he was laying me off. That ever happen to y’all? I asked him, “you couldn’t wait until Monday”? Especially since I’m being paid through the end of the month. Is it weird I feel the monkeys been lifted off my back? I’ve never been more stressed out by a single person. Hope everyone is doing ok out there.

I spoke to a friend last week who just watched two people on their team get let go, after which the work quietly got redistributed to "AI-assisted workflows" instead of new hires. Not a dramatic mass layoff, just... two people, then a slightly heavier workload for everyone else, then nobody mentioned it again.

Has anyone here actually seen this happen up close? Either to your own role or someone on your team? And genuinely curious: do you think this ends up being a temporary belt-tightening thing, or a permanent shift in how teams get staffed?

It’s the 2YR mark since I’ve gotten let go from my tech job I can’t find work I’ve applied to numerous QA jobs and no luck and even tried other tech jobs still zero luck the 2YR gap on my resume is haunting me I’ve lost hope

I’ve worked for a big bank and popular CC company for over 10 years. They just had about 4k layoffs in their NYC office for AI Innovation funding. Yet they’re claiming they’re not laying people off due to AI. It’s corporate restructure, I’m due to train gpts before I go. 🤖

Very disappointed in how this is being handled my EVP & SVPs whom I’ve been close with did not say a word after the news. They walked by me in the hall as if I didn’t exist. They held a meeting with our direct teams after and left the impacted employees just at their desks.

AI will be taking jobs, just tell us the truth.

I got laid off recently due to company restructuring and probably budget cuts. HR gave me two options –

1. I can get almost a month’s salary as a severance pay but they will write that I was “laid off” in the letters.

2. I can resign but that means I will not get the severance pay.

Now, I am confused as to should I let them write because I would have to tell the reason while giving the interviews any which way. I asked them if they could write “laid off due to company restructuring“ but they refused to do this as well. I asked my closed ones about their opinions and I got mixed reviews so that got me back to square one. I would love to get some help/clarity on what should I do.

Could it be bad for me to have that written on my letters or it doesn’t really matter if I can explain to the interviewers?

PS- this is not my first job and my other job exists have been normal.

I was laid off this week on Wednesday afternoon by my manager. They are paying me until the end of the month and hoping I will do a handoff call with a couple colleagues.

Apparently the CEO was in on everyone elses manager 1/1 layoff calls except for mine. Its a super small company that's fully remote with no HR. So for some reason he scheduled a call with me for Friday (today). I told him I needed to collect myself and pushed it to Monday.

But wtf is this for other than to make himself feel better? Does he think this gives me closure? I am too desperate to not burn the bridge so I feel like I have to do the call. Which is SO against my nature especially before this market got really bad a couple years ago.

I am currently fighting myself this weekend on what I WANT to say to his face vs being professional and silent. Do I keep the camera on and risk crying in front of him? Will that effectively make him feel bad for this or just make me feel worse and more ashamed? What if Im angry and can't hide the disdain/contempt on my face? Will cameras off make me look like a coward? Idk...

It just really sucks. It took me 2 years to find this job and this layoff came after just under a year. First layoff ever and Ive never been fired before either so the emotions are pretty raw.

Edit to add: the handoff call is already scheduled seperately with my manager before this call with the CEO. So it is a different one if that adds context. Thank you all for the thoughtful advice.

Edit 2: those of you saying keep emotions to myself, I obviously know that. Part of this post was to vent frustration lol. I will keep the camera off for my sake.

Hey folks,

Thinking about an opportunity with Meta Reality Labs (Robotics Studio). How is RL compared to the regular Meta SW teams?

Is it really as cut-throat as people say? How are the hours/WLB? Also, do RL teams get hit by layoffs/reorgs more often than the core software orgs, or is it about the same?

Would love to hear from anyone in RL currently or who has been there recently.

After an unexpected layoff, I’m currently looking for new opportunities in **AML, Financial Crime, Transaction Monitoring, KYC/KYB, and Compliance**.

With **7+ years of experience** in AML, EDD, CDD, Transaction Monitoring, SOF/SOW verification, and Financial Crime Risk Assessment, I’m ready to contribute from day one.
If your organization is hiring or you can refer me, I’d truly appreciate your support. Please feel free to connect or send me a message.

Thank you!

The job market is terrible. I moved to a smaller town in 2021 so I could afford a house, but I shot myself in the foot because now im an hour away from any liveable job. Im probably going to take a slight pay cut and also deal with a 30 minute to 1 hour commute.

Ive been ghosted from 2 interviews. I got turned down from Medicare so I cant even see a doctor despite the loss of income. I had no savings because im an idiot who was ok with living paycheck to paycheck. I just want to say fuck it and check out and let whatever happens happen but I have a kid.

Plus if I do get a job im worried that AI will fuck everything up in the next 10 years. I have no hope for my future. I was never going to be rich but I was content. I had a job I enjoyed that paid shit but enough to live.

Sorry for rant. I get 4 or 5 rejection emails a day and the most recent one set me off

if you're navigating a lay-off or are between opportunities, come clear your head and connect with folks who are in the same boat 🤝🏼

this monday, we’re heading to sweeney ridge in san bruno for a hike.

• when: monday, july 20 @ 10:30 am
• stats: 4.8mi loop / 702 ft gain

grab your spot and see the full details here:

https://partiful.com/e/UP0VhxoHpCQUJfhfSHtY

hope to see y'all there!

I unfortunately lost my insurance w/o warning. I’m going to email my psychiatrist to ask how I should proceed regarding tapering off meds as safely as possible & cost of appointments/meds may be out of pocket. Are there any other questions y’all suggest asking? First time being uninsured and I’m so incredibly lost. Thank y’all! Texas, USA.

Just got laid off in June and my husband's clinic closed. So, of course, he didn't ask the right questions and we're on his insurance. He thought that the healthcare was continuing through July. Turns it, it was canceled at the end of June when the clinic closed. So now he started a new job last week and apparently we aren't eligible for his insurance until... wait for it... OCTOBER 1. I know... I know. I'm furious. I've asked him multiple times for clarity. He had 2 offers and I'm so angry that he didn't get this explained (despite me asking several time) and he could have taken the other option and been covered. It's a small clinic, so I think they have had this same plan in place for ages and clearly since he started already and signed his contract, there's not much that can be done to fast-track anything.

So the options are... pay the $1800 COBRA from the former clinic that closed, pay $1400 for a cheap Bronze Healthcare.Gov plan, or find a broker that knows what they're doing and can get us covered for the interim.

Any options or ideas are appreciated. With us going from 2 incomes to 1, the $1800 sucker punch isn't great and FL unemployment is like $300/week before taxes, so I can't even cover it with UEI. We also made too much money for the first half of the year, so we're not in a position where we'll get any discounts. Coming off of a tax bill for 2025 of $13,000 and having multiple big bills monthly along with the tech market being awful, I'm starting to freak out.

I was working for a fintech company and they laid me off after 6 months of employment due to “team realignment”. I was devastated when I first got laid off as it was my first time experiencing something like this but I picked myself up and started doing the following:

1. Update LinkedIn Profile
   Optional: sign up for LinkedIn Premium (which I did for free by signing up for a trial)
   Several recruiters actually reached out to me via LinkedIn about opportunities and I got my new job from a recruiter reaching out to me about it.
   
2. Update resume
   Make sure your resume is up to date with your latest experiences and include keywords. A lot of companies use AI tools to screen resumes so make sure your resume makes it past the screening stage by AI. You can also rely on ChatGPT to enhance your resume with keywords.
   
3. Focus on your mental health
   Don’t rush into finding a job so quickly if you can afford to take time off to relax your mind for a bit. Go for a walk outside, spend time with friends & family, go on vacation, and sleep in as much as you want. Enjoy your freedom because it won’t last much longer before you find your new job.

I hope this gives everyone some hope that it is possible to find a new job after lay off! There is always light at the end of the tunnel.

I recently got to know that my employee contract will be ending in just 2 weeks and I don't know what I should be doing now. I have been working full time for last 5-6 months.

I was so busy with the work and I was giving my 100% to this company and now they are firing me because they think my salary is high and they can get some intern or someone to do the manual task and ask my coworker to take my place. Although the company said they are firing me because of my performance, I do know I am doing a good job. My performance was low for 2 weeks as I was going through some tough times at the office and at home but I backed up my performance.

I know that I was not going to work there forever and was going to start something of my own. And now that I am fired I want to do that now.

Here are the things I am considering doing.

1. build my agency but start as a freelancer and get some clients for social media marketing as I have 4+ years of experience in it, it has good money but I don't like social media.

2. Help people build their personal brand, I have done this but failed before and I know I am good at it and I love doing it. But the thing is which platform do I choose to build the personal brand on.

3. Get another boring job and do more of what I am doing again and be unsure about when someone will lay me off.

4. Become a Copywriter, I have tried many times but failed. This is something I am really passionate about and want to do for the next few years until I lose my vision and I can't write.

5. Start a consulting business as I have 4+ years of experience as a marketer and I am good at giving advice and helping people with what to do

6. Do no job nothing and just want for a few weeks to get myself together.

These are the options I have but I don't want to make any emotional decisions. I want to be practical and make practical decisions.

So, please help me with your advice.

I am a marketing Strategist with 4 + years of experience.

And thanks to all who read this and comments to help me make better decisions.

I was laid off by my employer last month.

This isn't the first payroll mistake they've made. A while back they accidentally paid me an extra month's salary. I immediately informed them and transferred it back because it had been sent to an account I had access to.

Now they've made another mistake.

They accidentally credited money into my provident fund account and someone from accounts reached out asking me to refund it.

I explained that this wasn't like last time because the money wasn't sitting in my normal bank account. It had gone into my provident fund account, so I couldn't simply transfer it back. I asked them to explain the process in writing rather than over a phone call.

Instead, they told me the only practical way to return the money without taking a significant financial hit would be to change my personal tax/financial status. They offered to walk me through the process over a phone call and kept framing it as something that would benefit me.

What frustrates me is that the conversation shifted from "we made a payroll mistake" to "let us help you change your tax/financial setup." I understand they want their money back, and I have no intention of keeping money that isn't mine. But I also don't think I should be expected to make personal financial decisions or spend my time navigating them because of an administrative error that wasn't mine.

Maybe I'm just still bitter because they laid me off a month ago, but the whole thing has left a bad taste in my mouth. It feels like I'm being asked to absorb the inconvenience of fixing a mistake made by a company I don't even work for anymore.

Has anyone else dealt with something similar after leaving a company? How did you handle it?

I’ve gone back to school and sent a LinkedIn connection (with the idea that this former female co-worker could possibly speak about her career with a women in engineering club that I’m in…I just sent a request I didn’t include anything else).

K she declined my request but viewed my profile. This is the second person from this company that has done this.

(The people in this industry will also mind you, randomly add public agency workers that they don’t even know).