Laid off after 20 years - what do I do now?

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GlueSniffer53@reddit

I joined this sub because my company was in the process of moving me to the UK. I made plans on where I'll stay in the UK and reached out to friends in London and Glasgow.

I was laid off yesterday after 5 years on a 20 minute phone conversation. This was my first job that I started as a teenager and I worked weekends and nights while studying at university. I'm going to start fixing my resume and applying to jobs in europe this week.

I'm so sorry you were laid off man. I know how much this sucks.

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Sn4keyBo1@reddit

Good job you didn't move in the end

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GlueSniffer53@reddit

Yeah, I'd be in a much worse situation if I were in the UK and laid off there!

I guess that's the silver lining.

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aredditusername69@reddit

Taking 5 years to make a 20 minute phone call is probably where you went wrong. I'd suggest that in your next role you try and speed it up a bit.

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namtabmai@reddit

I assume after 20 years you got a decent redundancy package? If so, take a holiday. Relax, unwind and take some time to process.

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Whoisthehypocrite@reddit

Max redundancy pay is 1.5 weeks per year worked, but capped at 20 years and £700 per week. UK redundancy pay is total crap compared to Europe if you are a high earner. So max you can get is 21k, which is peanuts if you have been earning 10k a month and worked for 39 years...

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Ok-Lack4735@reddit

This is minimum/statutory redundancy pay, lots of companies pay a lot more.

Plus even at minimum wage, that's over 10 grand, which is more than enough to take a holiday and have a breather while you think about what's next

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Whoisthehypocrite@reddit

But many European countries would give you a year of salary. And after 20 or 30 years, 10 grand is nothing for someone accustomed to earning that monthly and who might be 50.years.old with little prospect of a new job at the same level.

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PercentageSea1212@reddit

Not that many people earn 10k a month....and if you earn 10k a month I assure you that you've got a solid contract with benefits

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Whoisthehypocrite@reddit

750,000 people earn that ( and pay 40% of all income tax) and few have a contract that protects them in event of redundancy. Remember you often end up with statutory redundancy if the company goes into administration.

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EmperorsGalaxy@reddit

I'm sure someone who has been at a company for 20-30 years and is earning 10k a month is going to be pretty financially sound. Sure they might have to trade in their luxury car for something peasants like me and you drive. But I am sure they're going to survive.

Much more worried about Dave from the factory who got made redundant from a zero hour contract and now has to feed his family of 4 from a food bank

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Ok-Lack4735@reddit

Oh I'm not debating that it could be better - but even worst case the commenter you're replying to is right in their advice to take a bit of time off using the redundancy money.

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-TheNormal1-@reddit

That’s minimum redundancy.

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Whoisthehypocrite@reddit

Sorry. Meant to say max statutory redundancy. Of course some companies do pay more. But that is at their discretion. The statutory amount you are entitled to in the UK is peanuts compared to what you get in many European countries. It is especially galling if you are a high earner that has paid loads in tax and NI for years and then lose you job

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Tao626@reddit

I dunno, I think I would be pretty fine with nearly almost a full year of full-time pay to keep me afloat between jobs, especially if I was earning 10k a month so probably have most of my major expenses bought outright, but that's just me.

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pintperson@reddit

Many companies pay a lot more, especially if it’s voluntary redundancy. My old boss got a months salary for every year he’d been there, which was 18 years.

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stansbo@reddit

Must be the time of year for it, I’m being made redundant in two weeks time. This will be my third time in 10 years so not a new experience for me, my suggestion would be take time to get your head around it and don’t take it personally as the negativity that comes with it isn’t helpful.

If you’ve got a reasonable redundancy package then plan out how long it can support you in the worst case scenario, it can be helpful to know you don’t have any immediate financial pressure.

Lastly, if at all possible don’t let desperation (or recruiters) push you into applying for jobs you don’t really want or that pay less than you need. It’s much better to take your time and end up in the right job that having to look for another one in a few months time.

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inide@reddit

Use some of the redundancy money to take some time for yourself, get a bit of a mental reset and reevaluate what you want vs where you are

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damxmpp@reddit

I’m in the same boat after a long employment history. Currently searching, chat gpt is your friend in this job search. Get your profiles etc all updated first :)

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Teji0104@reddit

As someone who has to go through CVs and Cover Letters, then interview people, please read whatever ChatGPT pumps out at you. I've seen people copy and paste the output including their prompt.

I'm not against people using ChatGPT (we know you're using it. You're the 60th person applying with almost the exact same cover letter), but it doesn't make you look detail oriented when your cover letter starts with "Here is my job history, please write a cover letter for Company X doing Job Y".

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-myeyeshaveseenyou-@reddit

Used it on recommendation from a friend, holy hell almost perfect cover letter written in 10 seconds. I just had to tweak here and there. Cover letters were such a long pain before

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EmperorsGalaxy@reddit

You obviously got downvoted by someone who benefits from ChatGPT not existing. I always had a pretty good CV because my parent paid for a template years ago and I just copied that, but over the years it became so bloated with all my experience and qualifications that feeding it through ChatGPT and asking it a few times to streamline it really made my CV look great and concise.

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Stuspawton@reddit

What do you want to do now? Go learn a new skill, go apply for a modern apprenticeship. They’ll take you regardless of age

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willcodefordonuts@reddit

Take a day to relax and accept it.

Then polish up your CV. 20 years in the same company is great experience and you can make that look really good.

Get on LinkedIn and apply to anything you’re qualified for that seems interesting. Even if it’s already got a lot of applicants you want to get your cv into the hands of recruiters.

And remember job hunting is a numbers game. Don’t let it get you down

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Carlomahone@reddit

It happened to me in 2020. Around 4 months short of 20 years of service. This was exacerbated by the fact that I was 62 years old. I thought that was it. The only thing I had was my skill..I was an engineering CNC machinist. Who's going to employ me? Answer! A lot of people! I had an offer of a job within a week of putting my CV online. I had (and took) 2 jobs within 3 months. I quit one job in early December 2020, had Christmas off courtesy of my redundancy and was offered a job in late January 2021. The best bit? More money than I'd ever earned in my entire working life and a four day week. I retired last year. Keep your chin up my friend. It may seem like you have no future but believe me the old saying, 'one door shuts another opens' is true. I hope you have the same result as me. Good luck!

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Hefty_Schedule643@reddit

Brilliant comment 👏

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Aggravating-Tower317@reddit

if you can afford it - take a long break. you've earnt it

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domsp79@reddit

I'm assuming after 20 years you got a nice pay-off, so hopefully there isn't a desperate need right now to start a new job.

Once I recovered from the layoff I purposely organised my day.

So instead of my wife driving herself to work, I drove her. She saved on parking and it got me up and out of bed.

I'd then come home and do things relating to Jon searching until around 1pm.

Then I'd use the time between 1pm and having to leave and pick my wife up to do something for me. During this time I actually landed up starting a little record label which I then continued for about 8 years after.

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Ohyeahiseenow@reddit

Did you find Jon?

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domsp79@reddit

I did. At your mum's house

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jonowain@reddit

I'm Jon and he never found me. Desperate and heartbroken I've reached out but I think the record label success inflated his ego and he no longer wanted a Jon 🥹. Get in touch if you change your mind friend 🙏.

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jonowain@reddit

I'm Jon and he never found me. Desperate and heartbroken I've reached out but I think the record label success inflated his ego and he no longer wanted a Jon 🥹. Get in touch if you change your mind friend 🙏.

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mr_bearcules@reddit

Hope you find Jon soon, thoughts and prayers

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Comrade_pirx@reddit

Did you find him?

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cabbagepatchkid@reddit

Redundancy pay is in? Make sure you put aside enough to pay the bills for say 6 months. Can you invest in something for your self, e.g. a gym membership, a course online, some training that will give you a qualification?

Don't be hard on yourself and as others say, take a break from work and go on holiday for a week in the sunshine, somewhere nice.

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twinkledustwin-5511@reddit

Happened to me too, after 24 years. Firstly you deserve a break and that thing you used to enjoy when younger maybe yer chance . I started to go camping again up north of Scotland and this year went to Ireland. Also after Christmas I plan to get a dog.

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Nedonomicon@reddit

I left my job of 20 years to go freelance , it’s an odd feeling leaving something so familiar but you’ll get used to it , start applying for new jobs straight away and perhaps consider working for yourself ? You have bags of experience in your job and that’s pure gold

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Artistic_Train9725@reddit

This happened to me 15 years ago. Strangely enough, it was around this time of year.

I took Christmas off and in the New Year phoned one of my ex managers who had left a few years before to ask for a reference. He offered me a job straight away.

You were with the same employer for twenty years, so you're obviously well thought of. Start ringing around ex colleagues, supervisors, and managers, and they may be able to fix you up.

Most of all, good luck.

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pajamakitten@reddit

Take a break. Companies will be less likely to hire this side of Christmas, so take the time to brush up your CV and to think about what you want to do. It is fine to take it slow after this long at one company so do not beat yourself up for needing time to clear your head.

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Maximum-County-1061@reddit

It'll feel bad for a while.. keep busy and start looking for your next chapter

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scamp6904@reddit

Are your skills useful enough to become self employed? Well worth while if you can - my employer of 26 years got a shock when quite a few customers left with me!

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BulkyAccident@reddit

You'll experience a rollercoaster of emotions over the next few days and weeks, and it's totally normal, but it's also crucial to remember it's not your fault. It'll feel like a punch in the gut one moment and then euphoria the next, and none of it makes sense. But everyone who's been made redundant goes through it.

Get a good local redundancy solicitor to look things over for you and as good a package as you possibly can. Then take a holiday once you're out of there.

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Automatic_Role6120@reddit

Sorry op that must be a shock.

Pur your cv through chat gpt, start applying for jobs and believe in yourself

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