Dear Work Coach,
I transferred to another state location and started working for a department whose management announced they are investing huge amounts of capital for new technology after a 15 year lapse. The new technology was also implemented at two other operations similar to where I work. The other locations eliminated a shift of workers. I need to know how I can find out if my employer plans a layoff. I understand there are state agencies the corporation has to file information with.
Can you tell me if this agency information is public knowledge? I need to have this to plan my future. The decision to purchase this advanced technology was made last week. I may only have several months to prepare.
Any help is appreciated.
KJV
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Dear KJV,
I don’t know of any specific regulations related to posting lay-off information publicly. There may be…it’s just not my expertise.
Even if public notice is required, odds are they wouldn’t do it until they are ready to let you know anyway. Public is public. Companies don’t broadcast what they aren’t ready to share.
But regardless of whether there will be any public posting, what happened at the other locations offers big clues. Was it all the members of one specific shift eliminated, or did seniority apply? More important is how long did the technology take to implement? That can be years in some cases, months in others.
I wouldn’t be surprised if, once implementation is complete, some layoffs happen where you are in the same way. But that doesn’t mean you will necessarily be one of the ones laid off. Again, there may be company rules related to seniority or other considerations that are to your benefit. You need to find this out.
If there is a Human Resources department, when you’re ready to ask, they would be able to provide you with any rules related to notice of layoffs and any protections you may have such as accumulated seniority. But my first stop would be my boss’s office to ask whether I need to be concerned in the first place.
Ask for a moment of her/his time and approach her/him honestly and sincerely. Tell your boss you heard about the new technology and need to know how this will affect you. Ask when s/he expects the new systems to be up and running. Let your boss know you’re interested in any new training that might be required since you’re always looking to learn new things. Technology sometimes open up opportunities too! Doesn’t hurt to show you are someone willing to welcome change.
Explain that you very much want to stay with the company and will do whatever you can to fit in with the new processes…but also let your boss know that if there is any chance you might be laid off, you really need to know as soon as possible. (If the systems won’t be ready until a year from now, hold off on that last part. You can ask when it’s closer to the time, if you haven’t already moved on of your own choosing.) Odds are your boss won’t come right out and announce expected layoffs if it hasn’t already been made public, but you can try to read into the answer you get – both words and body language.
If you find out the implementation will be complete within a few months and s/he can’t look you in the eye and tell you that you’re safe, then it might very well be a good idea to start looking. Rather than worrying and feeling like I have no control of my future, I always find it helps to take action. Who knows? You may wind up finding a better job. There’s no harm in letting yourself know there are other opportunities out there for you. (No need to tell your employer, of course.)
It’s good that you’re staying on top of things and looking to protect yourself and investigate as much as possible, but make sure you aren’t jumping the gun. Technology doesn’t get implemented in a day. Find out the facts before making any decisions.
Good luck! I hope that things turn out well for you, whether at your current job or a wonderful new one.
Ronnie Ann
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New Work Coach Cafe Policy:
Although I had to stop answering individual questions (to preserve my sanity), as always your thoughts and stories are VERY welcome here.
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I’ve wondered if the best way to survive by being eternally employable is to make sure that you specialize or do something that needs a human doing it no matter what. Then I realized that as long as they can get a human to do it in another part of the world (where the pay is less) that my job is no longer safe. So where does this leave me? I have to figure out what is unique about me and how employable I am because of that uniqueness. I feel that at times you have to have the heart of a ronin (wandering samurai) and have no allegiance to any one company or group.
You bring up some really interesting points Natalie…I think they merit a post of their own and will try to come up with one soon.
Tech work is by no means guaranteed job-security anymore. But for people like KJV, showing a willingness to embrace the changes can only help.
I worked with a group who supported legacy (old) system technology and part of my job was to assess their willingness to learn new technologies to see if we could help bring them up to speed. We wanted to make room for anyone willing to learn and grow. Although almost everyone told me “sure” when I spoke with them at length, I saw tremendous resistance – and fear.
Even though it’s no guarantee, I just hope people facing new technology implementations at their workplaces will let their bosses know they are totally willing to jump in and do all they can to become experts. So many people can’t even get themselves to that point.