It’s Possible To Humanely Lay Off People With Empathy And Compassion

Layoffs will soon spread from the tech sector to other areas. The likelihood of continued downsizing is based largely on the plans from the Federal Reserve Bank. The Fed intends to cool down the economy to suppress runaway inflation by significantly raising interest rates. Higher interest rates on credit cards and mortgages have a chilling effect on growth, which will potentially usher the U.S. into a recession. For Jerome Powell, the head of the Fed, inflation is the biggest threat and needs to be tamed. The result will be a slower economy and a weaker job market with job losses.

What Happens When Human Resources Asks For A Quick Talk

The United States has already seen around 17,000 job cuts in the tech sector. Mostly everyone who has been terminated has a horror story. The process is almost universally cold, clinical and devoid of any empathy. You get the call or email from a human resources representative saying, “Could you please come to my office at 4 p.m.?” When a company is not doing well, you have a sense of what’s about to happen next. The walk to the elevator banks, going up a few floors seems to last an eternity. You are hoping that you’re not getting a pink slip, and it’s for another matter.

In a whirlwind, you are told that your services are no longer required. You are offered papers to sign, and before you can process what happened, you’re escorted by a security guard to collect your belongings. All the technologies are cut off and you take the elevator of shame down to the lobby and walk outside feeling numb and bewildered.

Airbnb Demonstrates How To Empathetically Lay Off People

Letting a person go doesn’t always have to be a harsh, humiliating experience. One standout example is the way Airbnb handled separations from the payroll in May 2020, during the early months of the pandemic. In a message to employees, Airbnb cofounder and CEO Brian Chesky said that he had “sad news” and told his staff that they were forced to downsize, in light of the company’s financial situation and the uncertainty of how badly the virus outbreak could impact its business. The short-term home and apartment rental app downsized 25% of its workforce, representing around 1,900 people out of the 7,500 international workforce.

Instead of using one-way Zoom calls to extend the message, he provided color and context as to why this had to be done. Chesky acknowledged that the pandemic could have a major impact on the travel industry for an unknowable amount of time, and as a result revenue could be hit hard.

Chesky told his team that anyone who was laid off, it’s not because of anything they’ve done wrong nor a reflection on their work ethic. Rather than providing platitudes, the company was prepared to offer severance, equity and healthcare packages. Its intent was to treat everyone in a compassionate and thoughtful manner. The company offered its team 14 weeks of base pay, plus an additional one week for every year at Airbnb, and the tenure will be rounded up to the nearest year. Health insurance was covered through COBRA for 12 months.

The short-term rental company provided an Alumni Talent Directory to help people find new jobs. Departing employees were given the option to have their profiles, résumés and work samples available for future employers to see. The company allocated its recruiting team to help the impacted workers find jobs. The departing staff also received four months of career services and were permitted to keep their Apple laptops to help with their job searches.

The Cold, Impersonal Zoom Firings During The Pandemic

It’s never easy nor pleasant to let a person go or enact mass layoffs. Airbnb acted honorably with empathy and compassion. This was juxtaposed with how a few other companies acted during the pandemic. While white-collar workers were primarily still working from home, the cold, impersonal one-way Zoom firings became commonplace.

At around the same time, scooter-sharing startup Bird fired 406 employees in a manner that you could only imagine on an episode of Black Mirror. The unfortunate workers were told all appointments were canceled and that they should log into a one-way Zoom call. A disembodied voice read from a script telling the listeners that they’ve been picked for layoffs. Their Slack and employee accounts were discontinued and end dates were supplied.

Ridesharing app company Uber announced a layoff of 3,500 employees. The remote workers were informed of their job loss via an online Zoom call. Ruffin Cheveleau, the head of Uber’s customer service, informed workers that it was their last day at the company. Wonderschool, ZipRecruiter, WeWork, the Wing and other companies all used video calls to inform employees that they’ve been terminated.

Recent Tone-Deaf Offer Recissions And Layoffs

Recently, Coinbase, the large cryptocurrency platform, announced it will place a hold on hiring and rescind job offers, due to the difficult economic and geopolitical events. Pulling the rug out from under the job offers didn’t sit well with many employees.

There was an immediate online backlash against the cold and cruel treatment of those who had their job offers abruptly taken away. The company said in response, “We will apply our generous severance philosophy to offset the financial impact of this decision” and will help the people who had their offers overturned. A talent hub was created to help the impacted people. This includes job placement support, résumé reviews, career coaching and access to the company’s network of people.

Coinbase employees started an online petition, leaked Thursday by crypto site Mirror, to remove top executives, including chief operating officer Emilie Choi, chief product officer Surojit Chatterjee and chief people officer LJ Brock, “in a vote of no confidence.”

In a tweet storm, CEO Brian Armstrong tweeted, “If you have no confidence in the execs or CEO of a company, then why are you working at that company? Quit and find a company to work at that you believe in!”

The polar opposite of how Airbnb acted is the story of Vishal Garg, CEO of unicorn mortgage lender startup Better.com. The chief executive coldly told his 900 employees that around 15% of the workforce will be fired in a one-way video.

To add insult to injury, Garg accused “at least 250″ terminated staffers of stealing from the company. In an email to employees obtained by Forbes in 2020, the Better.com CEO wrote, “HELLO—WAKE UP BETTER TEAM. You are TOO DAMN SLOW. You are a bunch of DUMB DOLPHINS and…DUMB DOLPHINS get caught in nets and eaten by sharks. SO STOP IT. STOP IT. STOP IT RIGHT NOW. YOU ARE EMBARRASSING ME.”

What Leadership Should Do When Laying Off People

Getting laid off is a crushing blow. In addition to the financial aspect of losing a job, it can cause serious mental and emotional stress. Leaders need to focus on the messaging to make the best out of a bad situation.

Leadership should start by offering color and context of what is happening. There is no reason to shame the staff. Instead, management needs to praise their work and accomplishments. Let the impacted workers know about available severance packages, healthcare options, what happens to their stock and options and give access to recruiters, career coaches and connections within the firm’s network of contacts.

Human resources and managers need to take the time and energy to speak one-on-one with the people who are being let go. Listen to their feedback, offer words of encouragement and write a glowing recommendation. Offer to keep in touch, as “boomerang” hires have become popular.