You are suddenly facing a job loss because of downsizing, facility closure, or maybe job termination. You feel confused, angry, and sad. At the same time, you grieve the loss of not only your income but also social security. What next? There are a few feelings worse than losing your job. It is a scary, anxious feeling, mixed with shame. However, you may feel about your work, if you have a fixed income most problems are manageable. When that is affected, it can feel like a tide is about to roll out and drag you off to the sea. It is a dreadful way to feel, but there is always something you can do. Planning and taking the right action is one of the important things to do when you lose your job. Thinking what to do when you lose your job and have no money? Follow these below-mentioned steps.
Things to Do When you Lose your Job
Acknowledge your emotions and then try to move on
Instantly after you have been let go, you may find yourself experiencing a wide range of emotions including panic about saying goodbye to a routine paycheck, exhilaration as you welcome life without a fixed routine, anger when you reflect on all long hours you devote to your previous position- the list continues.
Instead of getting caught up in each of these, identify that all these are normal. But then, it is the difficult love talk everyone requires in this situation- move on and try to focus on the future. If you think you are the only one struggling, then joining a group of people or discussing things with a professional can provide encouragement and comfort and assist you to reign in those adverse emotions.
Negotiate a compensation agreement
In a few cases, leaving employees who are laid off through no mistake of their own are entitled to severance pay. Severance pay can be described as an amount of money paid to workers who give up because of staff cuts, restructuring, and for several other reasons apart from misconduct. Your company may have a few policies on severance pay, so it is important to read your employee agreement of employee handbook, if you have one, to find out if you are eligible for severance.
If your company has over 100 staff, the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1988 allows you to 60 days’ notice period when mass layoffs take place. If you can notice as per the WARN Act and your employer does not offer it, you are legally permitted to severance.
If you are entitled to severance, you may be able to deal with the terms of the agreement, so do not assume that you need to accept the first offer that your employer makes. These useful tips for agreeing on a severance package can help you to maximize the compensation and benefits you get from your employer when you are asked to leave your job.
You must pay your bills yourself
In this situation, your focus must be to keep your income flowing. There must be many who depend on you. The bills will not get cleared themselves. If you have any of these situations, you sadly may not give finances the front and center focus that it deserves:
- Sizeable savings
- Severance agreement
- Any other income on which you are currently relying
However, you may be jobless for many days. Failing to concentrate on finances is a big mistake, as savings and severance will disappear faster than you think. Human resources experts recommend that for each $10,000 in pay, you must give yourself at least one month to find a new job. However, allot more time, when:
- Economic conditions are tough
- You have important relocation limits
- You are over 50 years
- You are over-educated
- You have outdated skills or niche
- You were in a similar job for over 10 years
Connect with your creditors
One of the important things to do when you lose your job is to contact your creditors. Even with unemployment advantages, your finance is going to be quite tight until you find a new job. And when you are experiencing a financial crisis, one of the first payments that are going to suffer is your creditor payments.
Come out ahead of that unavoidable problem by contacting your creditors directly to keep them informed about your current situation. Many creditors provide short-term hardship programs that could substantially lessen your payments for about 6 to 12 months. Some may even allow you to miss a few payments.
Check out what offer does your creditor has. Some creditors might not be helpful. At this time, you must consider the cost of maintaining your current account against the cost of your household maintenance. You must check what is the best thing that can be done at this moment.
Do not forget to collect your last paycheck
There are some states where employers need to show their last paycheck immediately after their termination. Others ask the employer to send the last paycheck of the employee on their routine payment schedule. Generally, employees are not allowed to hold back their employee’s last paycheck, upon emergencies like the return of company property.
If you have unutilized sick days or paid vacation, you may be eligible by the law of your state to collect the payment for this accumulated time. Check out the law from the labor department of your state so that you get the pay you are eligible for. You must also read your organization’s handbook and discuss it with your company about being paid for sick holidays or vacation leaves that you did not use.
Check out health insurance options
Maintaining your health insurance coverage might be expensive but handling a medical emergency when uninsured can be difficult. You must decide beforehand what you are going to do if any medical emergency comes when you lose your job. If your name can be added to the insurance plan of your spouse, start the process as soon as possible.
Work on yourself to become a good job applicant
Being a good job applicant has never been as simple as just having the needed experience and skills. As a job applicant, you are essentially a product that must be sold. And just as smart customers do enough research before making a final purchase, similarly research about employers before you make a final decision.
A job search starts with a well-constructed resume, but there is more to it. Consider your online presence. Make use of your social media accounts to search for jobs. While doing a job search using social media, think about something unique to present yourself online. Do not go to Facebook and talk rubbish about your previous organization. Do not use Twitter to say anything about a reputable company. If you want to clean your social media accounts, now is the right time to do so.
Find a new job
It goes without saying that when you do not have a job, finding a new job becomes your new job. This is one of the vital things to do when you lose your job. It is time-consuming and often, quite defeating, but you must treat your job search like important work. Be careful. Set aside some of your time for job hunting and be consistent.
Revamp your old resume
Before you start applying for jobs, take enough time to update your resume. Your CV will be read by Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) that most of the employers and hiring managers use while searching for employees. Make sure you include your most important skills in your resume. This will help to give your best shot.
Quitting a job or a termination is quite common these days. However, with these things to do when you lose your job, you can make the stage less difficult for you.