Helping Employees Deal with "Career Grief" After Layoffs | Workest

Layoffs have always been difficult for workers, including those who lost their jobs and the coworkers they left behind. Even before the coronavirus pandemic ravaged the economy, workers experienced "career grief" over lost jobs, including those lucky ones who survived mass layoffs.

An unfortunate reality associated with the cornoavirus pandemic is its severe impact on the workforce, and the millions of people who lost their jobs. Although it is not surprising that these layoffs are extremely difficult on the people who lost their jobs, this article helps highlight that many workers who survived the layoffs are feeling pain. A study in the Journal of Occupational Health Psychology found that layoff survivors experience poorer health than other workers, including symptoms of depression and eating changes. This grief and guilt can negatively impact both individual and company productivity, so it is important to address. Effective ways of doing so include first acknowledging your employees’ career grief, and being more approachable and candid so that your employees feel comfortable discussing and dealing with their grief. Additionally, showing compassion for laid-off workers both improves those employees’ future job prospects, and helps improve current employees' guilt for surviving the layoffs.