By Bruce L. Katcher, Ph.D. President of the Discovery Consulting Group, Inc.
It was 8:30 AM in the offices of a large Midwestern telecommunications company. The normally crowded, bustling hallways were empty. There was an ominous feeling in the air throughout the building. Employees were nervously burrowed in their cubicles. Many of them had already packed up their things the day before just in case. There was going to be a surprise layoff today, and everyone knew it. Word had passed like lightning through the rumor mill several days earlier. It had even been leaked to the media and had been announced that morning on the local television station.
One-by-one throughout the day employees were called and told to report to a conference room on the first floor. When the phone rang, and they checked the caller ID, they knew that the end had come.
Their manager and a representative from the human resources department were waiting in the room for them. The manager, his voice quavering, barely making eye contact with the employee, read from a script that said that today was that person's last day. Even though many had expected this bad news, they were stunned. Then the human resource manager told them about the severance and had them sign a few papers. They were then escorted out the door by security, never to return.
The next day there was a little more activity in the hallways, but things were just not the same. The organization was still in shock and mourning. Many were relieved that they had survived to see another day and another paycheck, but most worried that there might be more layoffs to come.
They tried to focus on their work, but were preoccupied with worry, anxiety, and stress. There were very few productive meetings and little informal conversation. Most people had a difficult time downing their lunch, kept their eyes on the clock hoping that it would move more quickly, and then left promptly at 5:00 leaving quietly. The stress lasted for many weeks and things were just never the same.
Managing Survivors After the Layoff: Nine Ways to Reduce Employee Stress
