12 Savvy Ways To Cope With Redundancy

12 Savvy Ways To Cope With Redundancy

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In reality, redundancy takes place when your job position disappears. It’s far from being dismissed from your job for other reasons, and you have to remember this. The company either decided to downsize, or the need for your skills and knowledge is gone.

Whatever the reason, a well-developed strategy can help you cope with financial and mental struggles. We offer you useful ideas to overcome the redundancy period and rise as a stronger and more adept person. Read each piece of advice carefully and apply it to overcome your current hardship.

Take Care Of Your Mental Health

Changing your ways and daily routine after redundancy can prove quite challenging. Don’t fall into a cycle of boredom and self-pity that might throw you into a depression. Make a plan of all the things you wanted to do but never had the time. Reading books can boost your mental state as well as watching movies and TV series. After all, why not use this period without work to relax and self-reflect?

Another useful way to keep negative thoughts away is to engage in other brain-stimulating activities. For instance, use your free time to learn a new language or a new skill. Maybe use one of these excellent free courses to keep your brain active. If you’re not in a position to find a new job right away, why don’t you volunteer? Keeping yourself busy all the time will enhance your self-confidence for the right opportunities.

Even things like yoga and DIY crafts are useful ideas to switch off because you deserve it. Exploit your free time to declutter your home and allow for changes in your physical and mental being. Plus, you can sell online stuff you no longer use for cash. This will come useful as it will help you with the financial aspect of the issue. Finally, refresh your bonds with old friends since apart from comfort, they can be your way out of the redundancy crisis.

Don’t Take It Personally

The number of people who remain jobless at a particular stage of their life is practically limitless. It’s a real thing that can happen to anyone on the globe. In reality, most people find it extremely difficult to cope with redundancy and stay positive. They are not to blame, of course, as having no job out of nowhere can change your life drastically.

To avoid taking it personally, first try to understand the decision. Economic, commercially driven reasons usually fuel decisions to dismiss people, and no personal feelings are attached. So, if you’re aware of what led to the redundancy, it would be easier for you to carry on with your life.

Bear in mind that you’re not alone in this mess, either. You’re sharing the same destiny with thousands of workers a year. The sooner you accept the fact you’re not in control of losing your source of income, the better for your mindset. The underlying thing is to leave that chapter of your life behind and try to achieve something more valuable.

If you have passive income sources, they will be crucial during this period. It’s always best to know that you have at least some in cash inflow until you find a new job.

Start Searching For A Job

Let’s be realistic that looking for a new job can be a Sisyphean task. Not only will it require a lot of time and energy, but you might have to alter some of your priorities. Still, there are multiple ways to increase your chances of getting hired soon after redundancy.

  • Evaluate your options. Are you planning to find a job similar to the one before? Or you’ve set your aims on something utterly different? Narrow your focus on what type of jobs you’re going to apply for.
  • Have a job search strategy. Get into the proper frame of mind and pursue open possibilities. Having a carrier plan will ease the process overall. Anyways, be realistic and expect fierce competition.
  • Study job descriptions. After you’ve set your eye on functions you’re interested in, take time to read job descriptions. Check whether your skills and interests match the requirements of each job post you’re applying for.
  • Improve your skills. Make a list of all abilities you’re not confident with but want to develop. Look for free courses online and sign up for government schemes that offer free training and education. The more progress you make in advancing your skills, the more chances of getting selected you’ll have.
  • Facelift your CV. Don’t always apply with the same CV. Adapt it from time to time to match the skills outlined in announcements. Approach employers as if that post is the only one you’re applying for and make them feel special.
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Photo by Andrea Piacquadio

Start Networking

You got over the lamenting phase, and now it’s time to bounce back in the business. If you have worked hard and have dedicated time to personal networking, this is a massive perk for your next ventures.

Unravel the path by drawing up a list of people you know and prioritize them by their ability to help you. Put previous managers first and then people who seemed to know everything and everyone. Don’t exclude influencers and HR professionals. Even your friends, peers, and relatives might have an exceptional idea that will change the course of your life for good.

Contact your external networks such as alumni, professional bodies, and women’s groups. Surely, there will be someone that has the right connections and a job offer for your qualifications. Also, social media can come quite handy if you engage in the right, proactive way. The more you develop your social profiles, the more chances to get notices there will be.

Finally, no opportunity will come up laying on your sofa and drowning in tears. Get yourself dressed up and meet people. It’s crucial to follow current matters, to talk about business, and never stop attempting to prove your abilities.

Know Your Employee Rights

Facing redundancy is undoubtedly a stressful and detrimental event both for your finances and for your mental health. When employers don’t treat redundant workers fairly and don’t abide by redundancy rights, the whole thing can get even worse. Thus, make sure you know your contract and legal rights before accepting any unfair treatment.

  • Right to a fair process. Any employer must act justly to select job roles for redundancy. If you believe you have got selected based on age, race, or gender, don’t refrain from appealing. To prevent this from happening, some employers might offer you an extra payment under a “compromise agreement.”
  • Minimum notice period. The redundancy law stipulates you must get a notice period of one week for every year in employment. So, if you worked with that employer for ten years, they must inform you about the redundancy ten weeks before. Some employment contracts might state longer notice periods, too.
  • Gardening leave. Garden leave means though you’re at home, you’re legally employed and receive a monthly salary and benefits. While on garden leave, you can get called back to work, and you must follow the rules of conduct. You can’t work for another employer, or you’ll lose the benefits.
  • Time off to look for work. Discuss with your employer to give you at least 40% off your working hours to look for a job or undergo training.
  • Right to consultation. Employers must organize individual or collective consultations. A union rep might attend the discussions, too.

Manage Your Finances

Lack of money to cover essential needs is a significant source of stress and unease. Thus, taking care of your finances is the first thing that springs to mind to people left jobless. Therefore, work out what payments you get entitled to and prepare a detailed budget.

Ask yourself whether you have savings to fall back on? What non-essentials and areas can you cut resources on? Making several small modifications at the onset is an excellent start to balance money wisely. Ensure you have a solid plan of money distribution to count on until your next income is in place. Utilize our tips to lower your electricity bill and learn how to make the most out of coupons. Even small savings quickly add up with the right strategy.

If you have outstanding debt, make its settlement a priority. Try to reason with lenders and credit card providers and persuade them to reduce your payments. Check whether you have insurance on your loan in case of a job loss. Budget and money makeover will at least soothe your financial nightmares.

Be Honest And Open

Having no job in the middle of a world crisis is the worst thing that can happen. It’s not only you who are facing such hardship but many people around. That’s why you have to be open with your loved ones about the entire redundancy process. Above all, be honest with your spouse or partner and start dealing with the problem from scratch.

Remember that being redundant should not make you feel ashamed. If your closest friends are familiar with your issue, they can help you tackle your worries and even offer support. Moreover, except to receive experienced guidance and even a job recommendation.

Lastly, even if opening up isn’t your cup of tea, there’s no need to despair. Some people feel more comfortable when they keep their concerns private and resolve matters on their own. Whatever makes you feel happier, it’s entirely up to you to find ways to exit the job crises as a stronger person.

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Photo by Lukas

Re-Center And Re-Focus

Neglecting the reality of being made redundant won’t alleviate your worries. All you need is some time to clear your head. In this phase, it’s best to find a hobby or interest to focus your thoughts and energy on. Harboring negative feelings brings you no good. It’s essential to find meaningful activities to concentrate on for the time being and seek viable alternatives for the future.

Regular mediation and mindfulness is a smart way to re-center your energy and understand your motivations. Examine how you frame the redundancy fact and how to move on with life towards better opportunities. Framing the dismissal by viewing it as a potential to rise from the ashes is what you’re aiming at.

Of course, there will be many days when you don’t feel like getting out of bed. As weeks go by, you’ll be able to reflect on past events more objectively and think soberly. Prove to yourself that you can move forward without holding a grudge against anyone. Take control of your career and show prospective employers that you’re worth their trust. You can even try one of these excellent home-based job ideas until you find something more permanent.

Reassess Your Career And Life Goals

Redundancy doesn’t have to be a dreadful notion by default. It can open up a whole new array of opportunities for people looking at the bright side of life. Use the redundancy period to contemplate your short and long-term career goals. Take stock of all your soft and hard skills, talents, and experiences.

Previous jobs and roles often leave us exhausted, stressed, and on the verge of burnout. That’s why changing a job or choosing a new career path can be beneficial for your work/life balance. So, if you’re to set off on a new journey, reinvent your passions and abilities. Upgrade them and devote some time and effort to earn cash with your adeptness.

Starting a new chapter in your career cannot go without reliable support and advice. Discuss your intentions with an impartial person who’ll help you define more precise goals and an action plan to achieve them. Personal development coaches can also assist you in setting goals and tracking your achievements. Even if you have no specific goals, a good career coach can help you. They’ll find plenty of niche job posts and relate them to your skills and experience.

Set Realistic Targets

Did you opt to go with self-employment? Or redundancy forced you to get back to a previous employer? Whatever your final verdict, one thing is sure, your objectives must be down to earth. Meaning, if you prepare for the worst and you keep expenses at the bare minimum, you’re halfway there. This approach will help you achieve reasonable targets and stay on track for longer.

Our advice is to set achievable and realistic goals. Even small targets for the first few months will be beneficial for any new beginning. So, make sure your financial plan contains at least one or two small goals each month. The fact that you achieve significant results will undoubtedly prove you’re heading in the right direction, and your motivation will boost.

People who set high targets often falter at the first hindrance and then lose enthusiasm and confidence about the whole thing. To avoid such failure, make sure your goals are as specific as possible and suit your economic and geographical reality.

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Photo by Lukas

Check For State Help

Apart from the fact that your life is turned upside down right now, you can apply for various types of help. The sooner you explore assistance options, the more likely you’ll qualify for any of them. Start by checking coronavirus-related support.

Make sure you’re entitled to receive severance pay. The employee and the employer previously agree on the terms of the severance upon any termination of employment. If you don’t receive such payment under your employer-sponsored plan, feel free to contact EBSA to assist you.

Then, remember to explore what benefits you’re entitled to as a redundant worker. Some of the most popular can involve the right to unemployment compensation and health care coverage. Unemployment benefits serve to provide temporal financial help if you meet the requirements of the state law. Depending on the place you reside in and work, you might also get approved to other monetary and non-monetary assistance, too.

For instance, you may qualify for help for paying water bills or money assistance for paying rent.

Be Patient

Being patient and not losing your self-esteem is crucial in the pursuit of a new job. Above all, you must understand that any job opening undergoes a complex process that can take up to two months. Give recruiting agencies a second thought to keep your productivity level high even when you lose patience, and things get rough.

When you send resumes, keep a record of all the posts you applied for without focusing on details. Such notes will help you keep track of the jobs you submitted applications for and what companies you expressed interest in. Also, stay active during the process of job hunting as this will tell tales about your personality and willingness to contribute.

Lastly, don’t forget that you can save money even when unemployed. Sometimes, it’s not about how much you earn but how much you spend. So, with proper planning and determination, you will survive this hardship and emerge even stronger than before.

Final Word

Losing a well-paid job is one of the top stressful events in your entire life. However, you can always use it as an advantage to change your old annoying ways by finding a new, exciting job. We strongly believe this post-redundancy guide will help troubled job seekers feel confident and be proactive.

Did you like this expert guide on dealing with redundancy? If so, make sure to check out the plethora of other articles we have on how to make and save money. Also, don’t forget to register for our ProMoneySavings Newsletter and get all the latest money-related tips into your inbox.

FAQs

How do I cope with redundancy emotionally?

Staying sane when your company is making redundancies is a top priority. Meaning, you must put self-care first and treat yourself with understanding and social mingling. Before anything, learn your employee rights and exploit all opportunities to receive payments that pertain to you. Stay motivated by learning a new IT skill, for instance, or a new language. Self-esteem and perseverance to survive the crisis will get you out of any economic slump.

How can redundancy affect you socially?

Job displacements scar people’s trust in others and also increases cynicism. In most cases, people who are made redundant feel rejected and have low self-esteem. They might believe they are less capable and productive, while reduced social contact usually leads to isolation. When you lose your job, you lose daily communication with co-workers and lose a sense of purpose. Social detachment is a serious issue, so the sooner you start focusing on it, the better for your mental and physical health.

Can you reverse a redundancy?

Any redundancy notice is legally binding on both sides, but in some cases, an employer might realize it’s no longer required. In such cases, withdrawing the redundancy notice is still possible, but only if both the employer and the employee expressly agree. No employee has a mandatory obligation to accept the reverse decision but rejecting it might have adverse consequences. Meaning, the entitlement to statutory redundancy payments might get jeopardized.

How can I help my partner through redundancy?

Most importantly, be supportive, understanding, and don’t panic! Encourage your partner to apply for prospective jobs and cut non-essential costs together. Explore the redundancy pay options and other benefits you’re entitled to. After all, redundancy is not your partner’s fault, and being side by side in tough times can only strengthen your relationship.


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    Jessica

    28 thoughts on “12 Savvy Ways To Cope With Redundancy

    1. Adele Gown says:

      It happened to me once a couple of years ago. It is not a good feeling. Being redundant can turn your life upside down. Apart from not having money, the main problem is that you feel not worth. Thank you for the wonderful tips. I hope I will not have to use them, but with the economy being in crisis we have to face that we will stay jobless any day.

    2. Kelly Branson says:

      How to explain to my family that I am out of job? This was my main concern. I was not prepared for the support they gave to me. I was afraid that they will think it was my fault. I was wrong. The best advice is to be open. It happens to all the people. With help of my friend I found a new job rather quickly. Thank you for the article. It is really helpful.

    3. Daniel says:

      My friend told me about Promoney. The articles are great. We needed something like this, to know that we are not alone in this crisis. Thank you.

    4. Thomas Haas says:

      Really difficult situation and you don’t know what way to proceed. For a week I was lying in bed and was not able to do nothing. I was in a state of shock. Now I am proactively looking for a new job and in the meantime I am taking whatever I find to work.

    5. Tim Jackson says:

      It is difficult to be without a job. Especially if the whole family is depending on your salary. It happened to me. This are difficult times. Lot of people are without jobs and there is no perspective to find it any time soon. I turned to alternative ways of working. I am working part-time on projects. It can not cover all the expenses but that’s it for now.

    6. Irnes I says:

      Well I am happy that I managed to get out of that situation rather quickly. I used all my connections to find a job and only for a month I was jobless. So don’t be afraid to ask for help. And help the others who are in situation like this.

    7. Preston says:

      I haven’t been in a situation of being redundant and I can not imagine how it feels. But thank you good article that can help people move on with their lives.

    8. Caroline says:

      It can happen to anyone. And it happens at least once in a life. It is very difficult to find yourself in a situation like this. And the best advice is to take some hobby and start looking for a new job.

    9. Gloria E says:

      Being without a job can really make changes in the life. And in the state of mind. One can really change his priorities faced with a situation like that. It made me think what is really important. To be healthy and to relieve the stress. I turned to yoga. I took up a hobby. I started knitting. Now I have a successful Etsy store with handmade items. It turned to be better. But however it is difficult.

    10. Alice Ashton says:

      Thank you for the articles. This one and all the previous. It is very nice to read about things of an everyday life, how to save money or how to deal with different situations.

    11. Boris says:

      Being without a job, it doesn’t always mean a bad thing. I was in a situation like that. And instead of feeling pity of myself I took some additional training and gain some new skills. Now I have a job that is better paid that the previous one and I am respected in a company where I work. Although it was a difficult situation I took the best of it. Thanks to my ex-employer that made me redundant.

    12. Gligorio says:

      The social media are full of people that talk about how they are out of work. Especially with the pandemic most of the companies have difficulties to keep their employees. But also you can turn to social medias and look for job posts. Or different web sites that offer job positions depending on your skills. So just try and look. Something will come up.

    13. Stanley Dowson says:

      Understanding that it was not your fault is the crucial thing. This way you can cope better with it. Thank you for the nice article. It is the right time to write about things like staying without a job. It happens to a lot of people.

    14. Baley says:

      The topic is not the pleasant one, but the article is great. It can help the people facing the situation like this to keep moving on which is very important

    15. Marin Mer says:

      To be without a job all of a sudden was very difficult for me considering the fact that I worked for almost 30 years with the same company. And being a bit older for a new employment I was faced with the fact that I wouldn’t find a decent job any time soon. So I took a break for 3 month and started my own company with the help of my friend. Now it turned to be the best decision in my life. Three years from then, I have 10 employees and the business is going great.

    16. Basiliana says:

      The pandemic led to a crisis and we already feel the negative impact on the world economy. Working in the tourism, I think we are all out of jobs for the time being. It is very difficult to pay the employees and to maintain the regular expenses when you do not have any income. So yea a lot of jobs became redundant and it is not the fault of the employee or the employer.

    17. Drew Deb says:

      I decided not to be in despair when it happened to me a couple of month ago. Having a part-time job as a writer on Freelancer.com, I turned it into full time job. Now I am working from home and I am pretty happy with the money I make so I am not even trying to find another job out of home.

    18. Marwel says:

      Thank you for your articles Pro-money. You always know the right time to write about saving and staying without a job. I read all the articles the minute they are published. They are great. Looking forward for the next one.

    19. Caitlin says:

      I receive payment from the state because my contract was terminated. Everybody should explore different option for receiving money depends on the country you reside. These several months will help you to get back on your feet while finding some other position and receive a salary.

    20. Beverly says:

      The benefits from the state and help during the coronavirus for the people being redundant workers is great help so everybody should use them This way you will be at least free from some burden while trying to find new job.

    21. Lewis G says:

      Saving money to get you through situations like this should be a prime goal. We all forget that there are difficult times in our lives, especially when everything is going well.

    22. Sarin says:

      Becoming redundant came as a great shock for me. I need almost a month to get over the situation. The support from my family was the most important and it kept me moving. Luckily it is over now. I have a new work position and I am even happier than with my old one.

    23. Shanta B says:

      My experience with becoming jobless is not pleasant. It led to depression. From this point of view I know it was stupid but I took it very personally and it affect my mental health. At some point I was feeling so useless that I was ready to leave my wife and my kids. It seemed to me that they watched me differently and they were just concerned with my behaviour. Really really difficult times.

    24. Doreen Delaware says:

      Great article. I think we should all think about the consequences and the fact that it can happen to all of us. And to help the people who are without the job same as we will want to help us.

    25. Barel says:

      A topic for extend discussion. And our reality now. Most of the companies are either not working or are on the verge of not working. And making people redundant in order to survive and keep the business.

    26. Girard says:

      Perfect blog for the coronavirus crisis.

    27. Sarah says:

      We all have to face that now the only way to earn some money is from working from home. More and more companies are hiring remote workers. In a situation like this they can not pay expensive and fancy offices and the workers are either working from home or being redundant.

    28. Coleen C says:

      Being in those shoes, all I have to say it that I don’t want to be again. Really difficult times. You have to keep moving and all you want is to stay in bed and do nothing. And the bills are piling and you can not find the way out. I don’t want to feel like that ever again.

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