Job Security is an Oxymoron
You think you’re safe — right up until you’re not.
One death is a tragedy. A million deaths is a statistic. Former Soviet leader and mass murderer Joseph Stalin is often credited with this quote, although sources are sketchy. Whatever its provenance, the point is well-made.
It came to mind recently when several companies laid off hundreds of workers. This is a trend that has been growing for some time and will only increase as concerns over a looming recession settle in.
Peloton put 800 people on the street; this is a follow-up to its release of 1,800 earlier this year in an effort to save itself from bankruptcy. Walmart laid off 200 in its Bentonville headquarters. Microsoft recently dropped nearly 2,000 workers. Wayfair is the most recent, laying off 900 people, which is about five percent of its global workforce.
I posted some of these numbers on LinkedIn, and while most of the responses were sympathetic, I got a few comments about the relevance.
“Walmart employs more than 250,000 people — what’s the big deal about 200 being laid off?”
When you’re one of the 200, it matters.
My response to each of these was the same — when you’re one of the 200, it matters.
I’ve spoken to a couple of the Walmart people. These aren’t entry level positions that were eliminated. One was a 30+ year employee in his 50s who hasn’t looked for a job since the late 1980s. While he might have deep knowledge of Walmart and who works where, he has minimal chance of getting a job for anything other than opening doors for the sales team.
Peloton and Microsoft workers mostly skew younger but have still had their lives upended from a decision they had no part in, didn’t see coming, and had no control over. A least one Wayfair worker was out on maternity leave. Now she has to add finding a new job to the stress of a new baby.
Somehow, people still use the term “job security” as if it actually exists. For those not affected for now, it’s easy to believe in.
Until it isn’t.
