First and foremost - I always think it’s important to reiterate that there is no right or wrong way to feel after a layoff. There is anger, fear, grief, frustration, and a whole host of other emotions that are unique and individual to every person going through this. However you feel, those emotions are valid, understandable, and perfectly okay. A lot of us in HR and Recruiting are struggling our way through this like everyone else, but most of what I would tell someone newly laid off hasn’t changed. Treat this as your checklist of sorts, a to-do list for your first few days of unemployment.
Off-boarding Paperwork: Complete all of the off-boarding paperwork as soon as you can. The paperwork should outline what (if any) severance you’re going to receive and should also have information on COBRA (or at least tell you when and from where that info will come). Especially important right now is making sure you’re clear on whether you’ve been furloughed or laid off. Employees who have been laid off are permanently terminated and eligible for unemployment. If companies have furloughed employees it means they fully intend to bring them back to work as soon as possible. Furloughed employees often retain their benefits and some portion of their salary.
Find a second reader: I always recommend recruiting a second set of eyes. It’s (understandably) a really tough time and emotions don’t always make the best, most detail oriented readers of us all. A second reader can point out anything you might have missed, or any red flags you want to follow up on.
Ask Questions: Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Human Resources gets a bad rap, but they do play an important part here. You might need to advocate for yourself or follow up multiple times, but don’t be afraid or feel bad for doing so. If any part of the paperwork you’re required to sign is unclear or if any of the terms don’t match what you were told when you were let go, you’re doing the right thing by following up. However - and this is a big one, the golden rule is never more true then when you’re leaving a job. Treat your HR rep the way you would want to be treated. I can almost guarantee you they are not the one who made the decision to let you go, and I have never, ever in my life, met an HR manager who enjoys terminations. You can ask questions, you can follow up, and you absolutely should if you have any concerns, but you can do so politely.
Severance Payments: Make sure you know how your severance will be paid. Some companies issue paper checks for an employee's final payment. Some will do direct deposit, but on a different schedule, and some handle it exactly the same way they would your normal paycheck. Either way, you want to know what to expect.
Company Property: Make sure you return any company property. Such as: your laptop, keys, second monitor, company credit card, files you have at home, basically anything of value that belongs to the company even if they didn’t specifically list it or ask for it. Your offboarding paperwork probably has a deadline for doing so, and being late can delay your severance, or the company might take the cost of whatever you didn’t return out of your last check.
Check your Access: In the digital age sometimes property means access. If you were ever an administrator on a company Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, or any other platform, make sure you sign yourself out and remove yourself as an admin as soon as possible. You’d be amazed how often the company forgets about this. I once discovered weeks after leaving a job I was still an admin on my old company’s LinkedIn page. I removed myself as soon as I knew, but I was shocked they hadn’t done so first, and SO glad I hadn’t accidentally posted an update to that page.
File for Unemployment: File for unemployment as soon as you’re able. If you’re in a multi state situation (like working in DC but living in Virginia) you might be able to choose which state to collect unemployment from. In that case it’s in your best interest to go through the process in both places so you can evaluate which would pay more money. Keep in mind that with unemployment nothing is immediate and you might be waiting a week or two from filing to actually start receiving money.
Evaluate your Insurance Options: Insurance is a tough one. Before saying yes or no to your COBRA coverage hop on healthcare.gov and see what your coverage options and costs look like there. Losing your job does count as a qualifying event, so you’re eligible to enroll through the exchanges even if it’s not open enrollment time. COBRA coverage can range from totally reasonable (or at least consistent with what you paid as an employee) to ridiculously expensive, so it’s worth at least exploring your other options. Just make sure you double check the last date you’re covered under your current insurance.
I know, nothing on here about finding a new job. I’ll get to that later this week. But first things first, and the most important thing in the early days is to make sure you’ve handled all of the above as thoroughly and thoughtfully as possible. Making sure you’ve taken care of all business related to leaving your old job is essential to setting you up for your next one.