"My last layoff, from a news-adjacent tech startup, came via Google Hangouts. My access to everything was turned off at the beginning of the call and I had to dial in from my personal account to finish getting laid off. By this point, I had seen several colleagues laid off, the company's lone human resources person leave and a new chief revenue officer come in. I was prepared, and it made a difference."
"Having been laid off from my first New York job at Digital First Media's Project Thunderdome, I knew how risky startup life could be. I had insisted the leeway to freelance for noncompetitors during my employment at Project Thunderdome be written into my employment agreement there. That made it easier for me to ratchet up my freelance efforts in the final days of my job and begin building my business."
Layoffs commonly occur in journalism and startup environments, and preparation materially improves outcomes. Employment agreements can and should preserve the right to freelance for noncompetitors to maintain income during transitions. Severance pay, COBRA benefits and many exit terms are negotiable even when presented as final. Human resources staff represent the employer’s interests, so avoid signing severance paperwork under pressure and request time to review. Keep copies of employment records and work samples, understand unemployment and tax implications, seek legal advice for restrictive covenants, and cultivate freelance or consulting pipelines before and after a layoff.
Read at Poynter
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