Question for someone who has never been laid off or been working steady for 10 years

[PhillyGuy]

or more. I start working again on 10/5 after being laid off for a month and wanted to know is there any tips you can give me to AVOID the layoff list? Thanks a Lot

[Odyssey]

Been working for over 10yrs. Been laid off once 'cause company went bust.

Tips? Find your niche. find something that no one in the company can do easily.

[Joie de Vivre]

my brother has been working for 10 years and only got laid off once cause the company went bankrupt.

 

advice he has always given me (besides giving your 100%):

 

1. network, network, network.

inside and outside of your department.

 

2. find a mentor in the workplace, preferably someone with more influence in the company.

 

 

One of the partners at the firm I work at told me the when he was a newbie at the firm, and only an associate back then -- he was the last one to leave work and the first one to arrive to work.

[Angel1111]

I was at one company for 19 years, and my current company for just over 7 yrs. I've been lucky because I have never been laid off or fired. As a manager at the company I currently work at, I can tell you what kind of decisions are made behind the scenes. First of all, sometimes, lay-offs can't be avoided - the company MUST get rid of people in order to stay afloat. That being said, here are the factors that are considered:

 

- which group of people need to be laid off; for instance, if it's field people, then people in the office people won't be affected - so it sometimes depends on where you're at in the company

- which employees are borderline to begin with; in other words, who it is that has a questionable reputation in the company in terms of their work and attitude

- which employee gets the most complaints from customers

- who causes problems in the office by gossiping and undermining management

- good attitude trumps expertise in most cases; along with who goes the extra mile

- length of time with the company is a big factor if their attitude is good and they do a good job

 

In the company I work for, we had to lay of a lot of field and office people. The company almost crashed over the past 2 yrs. In that time, we first got rid of the trouble-makers, then we started cutting into our 'good' employees, then we started cutting into the upper crust. Once it got to that level, it came down to expertise. All of these were very difficult decisions to make but usually the answer was obvious.

 

I will tell you that having a supportive attitude toward management is a big factor, along with creating high customer satisfaction. This doesn't mean kissing up to management but it does mean being supportive of them even when you don't agree with them. A good attitude about your job and the company goes a long way, too.

[nobody's girl]

Be willing to learn new things and take on more responsibilities. The only job I was ever laid off from I worked for a control freak that wouldn't give me any responsibility or chance to advance. There were layoffs at other jobs I worked at but I always seemed to avoid the axe because I was willing to pick up the slack left by those laid off and learn new procedures/techniques as they became available. Being able to fill the gaps can really save your butt when things get tight.