Unless being at will, the news about losing your job can hardly be pleasant. If you hear either “terminated” or “laid off” from the HR manager, it means the same – the game is over for you in this company. However, it’s also the beginning of another one. But does it make any difference for your next employer to know whether you were terminated or laid off? Actually, it does.
This article explains the difference between the notions and what reasons lead to each of them. Also, it describes what steps each process implies for both the employer and employee, and why your next employer might be willing to know whether you were terminated or laid off. Let’s get started!
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According to Investopedia, a layoff implies temporary or permanent loss of employment typically caused by reasons beyond the employee’s control. Those are the company’s reorganization, financial struggles, or implications of some external processes, like a global economic downturn.
Termination means the end of all professional relations between an employee and employer. Typically, it happens for such reasons as poor performance, misconduct, or legal violations both inside and outside of the company.
First and foremost, the employer and their representatives must know the difference between being terminated and being laid off. There are several reasons why it can play into their hands:
If talking about the candidate, knowing the difference between the two terms will help them define the winning strategy for the following job interview. If terminated, you, as a candidate, have to:
When following these tips, the hiring manager may think the candidate just stumbled but learned the lesson and is worth a second chance. To err is human, isn’t it?
Besides, employees should know they might be eligible for state assistance and unemployment benefits. The US Department of Labor official website can provide all the necessary information depending on the nuances of the job loss.
Finally, being terminated or laid off for some illegal reasons, a former employee can appeal the company’s decision in court. Should they prove that their former employer initiated wrongful termination, they have pretty good chances to get compensation for moral damage and also burnish their reputation for future job searches.
Why would people resort to various types of misconduct in the workplace, knowing that it’s a slippery slope? In most cases, it depends on the employee and their personality. However, it’s fair enough to say that sometimes, the company itself may provoke people to engage in misconduct.
For example, some companies create endless lists of responsibilities and duties and pay peanuts. Their workers give away all their resources but have to live from hand to mouth anyway. Such an unfair approach to using people’s labor will compel them to do the same in response. Second, it’s facing disrespectful behavior from the bosses or management daily. Employees end up suffering from mental issues, which results in destructive and toxic behaviors (bullying, microaggression, discrimination) toward each other and customers. It threatens a company’s reputation and, therefore, a surefire way to lose your job.
By saying this, we don’t mean that misconduct should be justified. We want to say that should you feel any injustice toward yourself, discuss it in an open dialogue with your management. If all your effort goes down the drain, quit the job and find a place worth working at.
Every business pursues a set of goals achieving which will bring the company to a new level. Employees must regularly and consistently contribute to the process to make it real. If consistency is broken, the time required to achieve success gets longer. Is it in the business owner’s interests?
This is why the consistency of high-quality performance is worth the weight of gold. If an employee is constantly late, misses deadlines regularly, or makes the same mistakes repeatedly, this employee isn’t a regular contributor. Poor work performance may cost too expensive for a business owner, so no wonder such workers get terminated sooner or later.
Misconduct comprises a wide range of options. For instance, it may be harassment and discriminatory behavior based on age, race, gender, or religion. It may be prohibited substance abuse during working hours or unreasonable disobedience cases and refusing to follow superiors’ instructions. Such misconduct acts as fraud, bribery, company resources misuse, or engaging with the company’s competitors for personal gain are not always connected with employees’ financial struggles. Some people have a low level of moral responsibility and a high level of greediness. All these actions are unacceptable for a reputable company and end up in termination for the hero of the occasion.
Misconduct and company policy violations are closely intertwined. But to be more specific, we’ve come up with several types of company policies disruptions:
Of course, policies vary from company to company. Anyway, it’s the employee’s responsibility to familiarize themselves with them and stick to them. Refraining from obeying rules doesn’t give you the right to sabotage the order. You are always free to quit; if not, don’t be surprised when you are terminated.
Knowing the flow of the termination process can be helpful for both employers and employees. Each party can be sure about the legitimacy and will be able to protect themselves in case of violations of any kind.
In most states, employers will apply the principle of at-will employment. This principle implies termination of the employment relationship at any time and doesn’t oblige any parties to inform about the cause. There is no common requirement regarding the minimum notification period. As a rule, it’s one or two weeks but can be longer, depending on individual circumstances.
If the reason for termination is connected with severe acts of misconduct or rules and regulations violations, the employer may be taking immediate action. However, the employee is typically allowed to respond to allegations, and the company will conduct its own investigation based on all the collected evidence. Such measures aim to make the procedure as fair as possible and protect the employer from being sued for wrongful termination.
The documentation pack may differ depending on the reason for termination (for example, misconduct or poor performance).
If it’s a misconduct case, besides the termination letter, which informs about the decision and outlines the reasons, there can also be a document of misconduct. This paper includes any evidence that proves the fact of inappropriate behavior. If it’s a case of a company’s policy violation, documentation acknowledging the violation is included.
If a person has been terminated due to poor performance reasons, their documentation set may also include these:
Some employers may require their soon-to-be former employee to sign the release of claims agreement. This document guarantees that the former employee won’t make claims against the employer based on their termination.
According to The US Department of Labor, terminated employees can be eligible for severance pay. It’s the final pay and benefits an employee receives before leaving the company for good. Fair Labor Standards Act provides no requirements for severance packages. Therefore, the issue is negotiated individually. Usually, this information is included in an employment contract. If a contract implies granting severance pay but the employer refuses to fulfill the requirement, a former employee can seek assistance from Employee Benefits Security Administration.
Factors that cause layoffs are not subject to employees. Usually, these are either strategic or financial reasons. The key difference between being laid-off and terminated is that the former doesn’t affect the candidate’s reputation and doesn’t “scare” hiring managers. Let’s have a closer look at why people face layoffs.
There are some examples of what reduced business activity or restructuring may look like:
According to the Society for Human Resource Management, salary and benefit payments account for 40 to 80 percent of gross incomes. Mass layoffs and hiring freezes seem to be a pretty logical solution for companies that want to solve their financial issues or bring their business to a new level, especially in days of constant economic downturns and crises. Business-wise, there are better solutions than pouring money into outdated roles and departments.
The news about getting laid off may well be astonishing. However, the state provides a set of services to share the load laid-off employees have to carry afterward.
The legislation regarding the layoff procedure varies from state to state. However, the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) requires employers with 100 or more employees to provide at least 60 calendar days advance written notice of a mass layoff of 50 or more employees at a single employment site. There might be exceptions due to unforeseeable business circumstances or natural disasters. In other cases, the nuances of the procedure should be specified in the employment contract. To get additional information on the notice requirements in each state, contact the State Dislocated Worker Unit.
The layoff documentation pack is supposed to include the following:
Since there are no federal programs, each state has its policy of paying unemployment benefits, which you can find on Careeronestop (check the link in the sources). Unemployment benefits are represented in the form of Unemployment Insurance that is paid out weekly. To be eligible for unemployment benefits, all states normally expect applicants to:
