Layoffs are occurring in many business sectors. Here’s how to avoid being laid off and what to do if you are.

After months of talent wars fueled by the Great Layoffs, the labor market has shifted again, with slowing business growth and fears of a recession looming. Despite the low unemployment rate, at 4.6% in Alaska and 3.5% nationally, more than 60 percent of the 750 CEOs surveyed by the business research firm the Conference Board expect a recession in the next 12 to 18 months. Another 15 percent of CEOs surveyed said their region is already in recession.

Many employers who had bet big on post-pandemic growth have moved into layoffs. Re/Max has cut 17% of its national workforce. Peloton, Carvana, Ford and Better each laid off thousands of workers. Walmart, Wells Fargo, 7-Eleven, Shopify, Netflix and JPMorgan have all cut multiple jobs. #OpentoWork banners on LinkedIn profiles have reached levels not seen since the pandemic began.

Avoid layoffs

When making layoff decisions, leaders strive to retain the “A players” and jettison employees they deem essential to their organization’s future. If you work for a good employer and want to keep your job even if you’re fired, position yourself as a “go-getter,” someone who handles change well, has mission-critical skills, and gets more done in one day than in two.

Find ways to demonstrate your value to your organization and to the people who decide who stays and who goes. What opportunities can you find to work on priority projects that will positively impact your employer’s bottom line?

Make it a habit to let your manager and other senior management know what you’ve accomplished and how it’s impacted sales, reduced costs, and acquired customers. Develop other strategies to make yourself visible to your organization’s decision makers without making yourself into a showboat.

If you work in a service company, make yourself important to your employer’s customers. Dedication if you feel a layoff coming. If your life allows, start arriving early, working late, or commuting from telecommuting to the main office more often.

the host

Despite your skills and determination, especially if you’ve moved to a new employer in the past year and adopted a last-in, first-out strategy, you may end up on the chopping block.

Dust off your notebook so you’re ready to go. Update it with any recent work accomplishments and skills and certifications you’ve acquired.

Start exploring the job market. Which sectors and employers are most likely to survive a recession? Often legal, healthcare, pharmaceutical, education and government remain strong. Pick employers that interest you, put Google alerts on them, and read what they and their CEOs post on social media.

If you are fired

If you receive layoff notice, ask for severance pay, unused vacation or sick pay, and extended insurance coverage. Ask for letters of recommendation from your immediate supervisor and others. If you wait too long, you may have a hard time finding them, as they may be spread out as well. If you’re not sure what benefits you can expect, read your employment contract or handbook.

Apply for unemployment right away to make sure you get the maximum compensation possible after you leave work. If your insurance ends at work and you are no longer eligible for Cobra benefits, consider alternative insurers. Post your resume on Indeed.com, ZipRecruiter and other job boards. Reach out to your network and ask for job leads.

Make sure your layoff notice has something to say about being hired, as some employers are quick to bounce back. Check the deductions section of your previous employer’s handbook to see if there is any information about hired workers. Call your former employer’s human resources officer and ask them about their re-employment policies and practices. Call your former supervisor and let them know you are interested in returning. It can support your immediate rehire.

Reduce stress by knowing where you stand financially. Review your finances, cut down on non-trivial expenses, and if you need to, contact your service providers and find out if you can reduce or defer any payments.

Finally, don’t take your layoff personally. Your employer had to downsize to survive. If you are angry at your employer, work with your emotions so that you are free from your emotions when interviewing employers. If there’s a job out there that you want, you want them to want you, so you grab it.