Corporate Layoffs

The New York Times ran an interesting article recently about corporate layoffs, specifically one that's close to us here in Richmond, at Circuit City:  "...The company [Circuit City] fired 3,400 people, or about 8 percent of its work force, not because they were doing a bad job and not because the company was eliminating their positions. Instead, Circuit City executives said the workers were being paid too much and that the company would replace them with new employees who would earn less. It was an unusually clear window on the ruthlessness of corporate efficiency." (New York Times, David Leonhardt, Published: April 4, 2007).

Corporate layoffs are part of today's reality.  And unfortunately, there's little employees can do about it.  As this New York Times article points out, people are let go, fired, downsized, rightsized, redeployed, RIF'd (you know all of the euphemisms) even when they are doing their jobs and doing them well.   So what's an employee to do?

I think the answer is: Understand your options.  This way, if and when you find yourself in a position similar to these folks at Circuit City, you know you have options.  Options and choices empower you to create the life you're looking for.  Here's a story about a great family who looked at a corporate layoff as an opportunity to create the life they wanted.