‘Unpredictable, so people need to be prepared’: High profile layoffs reveal a jittery job

Workers in general have had a pretty good run the past few years.

Unemployment rates have been low as hundreds of thousands of new jobs have been created.

Workers had the ability to jump from one job to the other with ease, often getting a big raise in the process.

But that’s starting to change.

Stories of layoffs at small and large companies are telling an ominous story of a jittery job market.

Just this week CVS Health announced they’d be letting about 3,000 workers go.

In Brookline, one woman told Boston 25 News that she feels “everything is so uncertain.”

A man said, “Some people don’t even want to get up and work every day, and some people do and they can’t find a job, so it’s a pretty rough time we’re in.”

Another woman simply noted, “It is difficult to find and job and you’re also afraid of layoffs.”

The numbers show a once-hot job market is cooling off.

In 2022 about 400,000 jobs were created on average each month.

By this past summer, that number was down to 116,000 jobs a month.

“I think what’s going on in the job market now is everyone is skittish,” said Gregory Stoller, a Master Lecturer at Boston University’s Questrom School of Business. “I think everybody wants know, is Harris going to get in, is Trump going to get in, and what’s going to happen.”

He said many companies are under increasing pressure to improve their bottom line.

“The most efficient way of doing that is to trim payroll because payroll is usually the number one or number two cost at most companies.”

This is a big change for workers who were getting accustomed to being in the driver’s seat.

“It was absolutely an employee’s market with lots going on and people having multiple job offers,” said Elaine Varelas, a senior executive at Keystone Partners.

She says times have changed.

“If they think they can just go across the street and find that other opportunity or go someplace else for a 20% pay bump, that’s not going to happen. So, people need to pay more attention to what their status is at their current employer is and be very aware of it.”

Vareles says the first step to creating job security is obvious but often overlooked.

“People need to be great at their jobs. You have to know the basics. Your colleagues ned to be able to look at you with confidence in your ability to do the job. So, that’s the baseline. That’s a must.”

Workers need to develop and nurture a network internally.

“Not just your boss, but other departments and senior people. Do they like you? Do they know that you’re very capable? Have you offered to help them with a project, just because?”

Remote workers have the particular challenge of staying connected with their organization.

Varelas advises workers to initiate face-to-face contact even it is over Zoom.

If that’s not possible, then document everything. Send a morning email outlining what you’re working on.

Mature workers need to demonstrate that they’re staying up with their industries.

“Your network can’t just be the older worker group that you’ve had coffee with through the years. It needs to be those younger people as well. You have something to teach them. They have something to teach you.”

Vareleas agrees the coming months will be a little rocky.

“Unpredictable, so people need to be prepared for whatever might come.”

That’s why she says it’s imperative that everyone always have their resume and LinkedIn page updated, even if they don’t feel particularly worried about their situation right now.

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