What to Do If You Get Retrenched? How to Rebound Like a Champ

Singaporean tech workers are feeling a bit of a pinch right now. Minister of Manpower Tan See Leng revealed that tech companies have laid off 1,270 resident workers from July to Mid-November. These mass layoffs include non-tech roles – eight in 10 of the retrenched workers came from sales and marketing.

The number of retrenched in those five months has already surpassed the country's annual average of 790 resident workers from June 2017 to June 2022, Tan said. These numbers may cause some alarm.

According to the MOM, retrenchment refers to the “termination of permanent employees due to redundancy.” Redundancy means a role has become superfluous. It may be due to cost-cutting efforts or reorganisation.

It is often seen as a company's last-ditch effort to recover from dwindling resources amidst a sluggish economy. Though Singapore’s economy expanded by 4.4 per cent in the third quarter of 2022, the global slowdown of consumer spending, coupled with worldwide inflation, has forced tech companies to cut costs and downsize the workforce.

For instance, Meta, Facebook’s parent company, just cut down 11,000 jobs or 13 per cent of its global workforce – 50 of those positions were located in Singapore. Even Shopee was not spared, with the e-commerce giant slashing jobs a second time in September, bringing the number of retrenched jobs to 180. It was a bid for their parent company Sea to “turn profitable."

While this sounds unpleasant, it could be more so if it happens to you. So what should you do if you get retrenched? Here is a primer on how you can turn it around.

What to Do About Retrenchment

Preparing for retrenchment is the first step to bouncing back from it. A mass layoff is hardly ever a surprise. Here are five signs to watch for if your company is experiencing turmoil. 

Your company or industry is struggling to remain competitive.

Keep a close eye on your industry and company performance. Do you notice a continuing trend of negative industry forecasts? How about similar enterprises going out of business or competitors resorting to offshoring or outsourcing? It might be a matter of time before your company follows suit. Stay updated on what your firm says in press releases and public spaces.

Staying alert and aware of what’s going on will allow you to act and make plans more quickly.

Keep your ear on the ground.

Have you been hearing news that your company is downsizing? Use your network. Check with your colleagues if they've heard similar news. Before you jump in on the grapevine, try to confirm these rumours with your line managers or superiors. What they say or don't say will be telling. 

Whether there’s truth in the rumours or not, it’s always a good practice to update your resume (start with your online job profile) always. and scout for professional opportunities elsewhere. Utilise your external network for leads.

You don’t seem to have a lot to do.

You notice that your projects keep getting reassigned or that you seem to have a lot of downtime. Casually check in with your colleagues and ask about their workload to see if you are the only one sitting on your hands. You could also volunteer for new projects or suggest new ideas. If your manager keeps turning down your offers and suggestions, you may want to start planning an exit strategy.

You experience prolonged austerity measures.

The company has applied several cost-cutting measures, which include a company-wide hiring freeze for what seems to be an indefinite period. There are no signs of management lifting these measures any time soon. Apart from feeling the pinch from not having had a pay rise or bonus for the last two years, you have a nagging feeling in your gut that the situation isn’t likely to improve shortly.

Your company just underwent a merger or a sale.

Take the case of Twitter. After Elon Musk bought the company for US$44 billion, he laid off 50 per cent of its workforce. Mergers or sales usually lead to downsizing to keep up with efficiency and restructure the organisation. It can affect anyone in the workplace hierarchy, including senior management.

Be vigilant if there is any news about a new owner taking over or a merger happening in your company, as some departments can be deemed redundant.

What Are My Rights as a Retrenched Employee?

It can be challenging when you become one of the many laid-off workers. Your livelihood is suddenly pulled from under your feet, leaving you in a formidable financial position. You may feel anger, confusion, fear, sadness, and even betrayal. These are all very normal reactions. However, once you get your emotions in order, remember that you have rights as an employee. 

According to MOM, employees who have served the company for at least two years are eligible for a retrenchment benefit. The amount depends on the stipulations in your contract or, in the case of unionised companies, a collective agreement. The amount usually ranges between two weeks to one month's salary per year of service, depending on the company’s financial position and the industry.

Employees who have worked with a company for less than two years are not eligible for a retrenchment benefit, but the employer may provide some sum out of goodwill.

What Do I Say in My Resume or Job Interview About My Retrenchment?

While you may want to find a job as fast as possible, keep in mind that others will be doing the same – which means you will be competing in the same pool of employers. Before deciding what to put in your CV or resume, think about your hard skills and transferable skills — how they can feature in other industries or roles. It can help you widen your search and increase your chances of success in finding other jobs.

Once you’ve done so, proceed to do the following:

Consider creating a functional resume.

A functional resume allows you to tailor your resume for a specific job by highlighting the skills and capabilities suited for the role. Instead of writing down your experiences chronologically, arrange them according to relevance.

Highlight your transferable skills.

While listing down your technical skills is a given, pay attention to your transferable skills too. What makes you ideal in the workplace? Do you have leadership skills, project management capabilities, problem-solving abilities, or even organisational expertise? Doing so can help hiring managers understand what you bring to the table, even if you may have come from a different role or industry.

Don’t limit yourself to what you’ve learned from your previous job, either. Did you pick up any skills in university, while volunteering for an organisation, or even while doing a part-time job or a side business? Write what can make you as attractive a candidate as possible.

Word your retrenchment with sensitivity.

While you may think that being retrenched carries some stigma in the jobseeking market, many employers understand that the mass layoffs are not your fault as an employee. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, three in four employers said they would not factor retrenchment into their hiring decisions. Hence, you don’t have to dwell on it in your resume. Simply write something along the lines of, “Retrenchment due to company downsizing.” Above all, an employer is interested in your capabilities as an employee.

Be honest with your hiring manager or prospective employer.

When they ask you why you are looking for a job during the interview, you can be honest with them about being laid off. However, do not badmouth your employer, even if you may have some lingering feelings of resentment against them. It can turn off your interviewer. 

Retrenchment can be a weary experience, but it doesn’t have to keep you down. Use it to #SEEKBetter opportunities and get your career back on track by updating your JobStreet profile and downloading our app on App Store and Google Play. For more expert advice on how to bounce back after retrenchment, visit the Career Resources page.