“Now is not the time for fear. That comes later.”

- Bane, The Dark Knight Rises

It was 1 pm on a Wednesday, when I remember getting a ping on my Outlook Calendar - my boss had set up a 4 p.m meeting, which co-incidentally was on the last day of my PIP (Performance Improvement Plan).

For those unaware, a PIP is a timeline that an employer puts you on when they want to get rid of you with minimal to no legal repercussions. In rare cases, it’s for genuine concern towards the employee’s performance, but more realistically, its a warning that you’re going to be let go.

I remember walking into the room, thinking they will give me till the end of the week to get my things together, and then I’d be sacked. While my boss sat across the table, he assured me that I did the best I could, but today will be my last working day. H.R then came through, collected my ID card, and informed me that I’d been locked out of the system. I was advised to pack my things and leave.

I was stunned in silence. My mind couldn’t comprehend what just happened. Even though I assumed it was coming, the actual impact of the moment is just ….. hard to describe until you’ve been in it. I remember asking to borrow my friends gym bag to take my things home, and I couldn’t give him a specific reason, because I didn’t have the courage to tell him why. It still hadn’t sunk in.

My manager had taken the team for after-work drinks, so I wouldn’t get a chance to meet or see anyone before I leave. It was very stealthy and calculated. I clearly wasn't their first rodeo. I remember the ride down the escalator as I left, my mind still blank as to … what happens now.…

In a world like ours, where your societal worth is determined by the job you hold, being laid off is a life-changing moment. It genuinely affects your sense of value and self-worth in ways that most don’t realize.

If you know me, it’s hard to argue that my most apparent trait is being a people pleaser. I’d do whatever I can to make someone happy, sometimes to my own detriment. This extended to my job and career. I was there for 7 days a week, 12 hours a day for most of my short tenure. The security guards, janitors and construction workers knew who I was. This was my first job, and I wanted to give everything I have towards it. And when that is suddenly taken from you, you’re just lost. No clue of what to do, because you never had to think about it before this.

In the moment, though I was broken, I kept my composure. People always say that being laid off always works out for the best. So I knew there was a reason for why this happened, and I also knew that I wasn’t in the right frame of mind to comprehend the reason. I was more focussed on the fallout of being laid off on a US work visa.

For the uninitiated, any immigrant who wants to legally work in the United States must obtain an H1B visa, which is the legal terminology for a ‘work visa’. This document authorizes your employment within the country, provided your employer has proved to the government that the job at hand cannot be done by an American citizen/local. Your employer agrees to take care of all the paperwork and legal fees, in exchange for the services you provide them under employment. This is termed as ‘Sponsorship’

Here’s the traditional path that a student immigrant follows

1. Arrives in the country on a student visa for higher education (Bachelors, Masters, PhD, MBA).
2. Studies for 2-5 years, while also working part time.
3. After graduating, the student gets 3 years to work in the States, while they apply for their work visa.
4. If the work visa is approved, you can stay in the country as long as you have an authorized employer. The visa is issued for 3 years, and then renewed every 3 years until you get a Green Card (usually takes 10-15 years to obtain).
5. During this period, you are allowed an unemployment period of 60 days (non-continuous). The minute you cross that 60 day mark, you are in the country illegally and can be deported.

An important factor to consider is that your work visa is only as good as your valid employment. Its a relationship that your employer builds with the government and vouches for your services in exchange for residence in the country. When an H1B employee is laid off, they don’t fear unemployment. The first thing that comes to mind is… deportation. Your value to the country is only as strong as the job you hold. No job, no residence. When I got laid off, I didn’t have time to sit and process it or take a break or explore something else. My countdown had begun - 60 days or I’m sent back to India. And this was just me as a bachelor. I’ve know people with families, kids, houses and cars who have a lot more invested in the country, and hence a lot more to lose.

H1B workers usually aren’t afforded a safety net. We need to immediately work hard, in the hopes that a company can sponsor us. One of the toughest feelings during this process is when you’re filling up a job application form, and there comes that dreaded question.

“Do you require visa sponsorship for this role? Yes / No? “

You feel that pit in your stomach as you select “Yes”, knowing very well that this could be the deciding factor, and may likely take your resume off the roster entirely.

Its a different kind of stress, and I’m very thankful that it happened to me in early 2019, at a time I could learn from it. I was thankful I found another job before the 60 day timer ran out. And I’m extremely grateful that my new job was in the same city, making it a genuinely seamless experience. But I’m one of the lucky ones.

Another eventual consequence of a lay off is the detrimental blow to employee morale. When you know a layoff is coming, you can’t focus on work. You know there’s a list going around, leaving you consistently anxious on whether you made the cut. Yet, somehow, work is expected to be completed by the deadlines, so things will progress as usual.

Say you survive the layoff, it takes time to bounce back. You’re likely dealing with the loss of multiple colleagues, even friends, who are no longer with the company. The fallout also includes a lot of chaos and confusion in terms of ongoing projects and future planning. You’re lost for a considerable amount of time, until order is restored.

This season of layoffs (2022) is a lot rougher. Not counting the fact that there’s a recession coming, most companies are also enacting a hiring freeze. Recruiters often see the worst of it, because they’re falsely considered expendable, and are hardly the first department to be hired back. Add to that, we’re entering the last month of the year, where work in general, comes to a standstill. Everyone’s usually busy with wrapping up the end-of-year goals, as well as planning for the holidays.

For those who are impacted right now, if you’re someone who was laid off recently and it looks bleak, know that you’re not alone. This is a brutal, unfair and challenging life event to navigate through and anything you’re feeling is valid. The key to coming out of this, is to not let it paralyze you. You can take a few days to breathe, but you need to get back on the horse and work at it to get yourself back into the workforce. Depression and anxiety can cause so much mental paralysis, and it's likely what stands between you and your solution.

An important thing to remember during a layoff, is that it is not your fault. You are about to fight a battle with your self-worth and your personal sense of value, and its crucial that you remind yourself, as often as you need to, that this isn’t personal, its purely business. That’s the difference between being laid off and being fired. When you’re fired, it’s because of something you did. When you’re laid off, its because the company is trying to course correct.

For those who aren’t impacted, I urge you to do whatever possible to help those that are, even if as simple as sharing LinkedIn Posts. My LinkedIn was filled with layoff announcements, but that's slowly being over-ridden by people offering to help, People who have created databases, legal aid, counseling to help with mental issues and options that can help you on a visa.

Don’t give up. Just keep looking for ways out. This is not fair, but unfortunately its the hand you’ve been dealt, and its up to you how you choose to play it. Getting laid off was the worst possible scenario I had to endure, to get to the best possible outcome.

Godspeed.