The incalculable damage of layoff to morale and engagement

Companies preparing for layoffs should know the new risks and costs of separation events, specifically on consumer brand and employer reputation: New data published by recruiting and outlpacement solution provider CareerArc after surveying 1,160 respondents:
useful

December and especially January have been observed to be the worst months for layoffs, and just last week the announcements have started to come in: Capital One announced plans to layoff nearly 1k employeesESPN to lay off 100+ after Thanksgiving, and Sears to close 63 locations right after the holidays. Contributor Robin D. Richards – Chairman and CEO, CareerArc.

Companies preparing for layoffs should know the new risks and costs of separation events, specifically on consumer brand and employer reputation: New data published by recruiting and outlpacement solution provider CareerArc after surveying 1,160 respondents:

66 percent of Employees Share Negative Reviews of Employers Who Let Them Go That percentage nearly double in two years (only 38 percent in 2015). The use of social media and employer review sites to share negative opinions also doubled.

Biggest Threat: Millennials Are Even More Jaded By, and More Vocal About, Being Let Go Millennials are 22 percent more likely than baby boomers to develop a negative perception of the employers who laid them off, are 2.5x more likely than Gen-Xers to share those views on social media.

What’s the Cost?: Poor Employer Brands Lose Out Job Candidates (Especially Female Candidates) & Repeat Customers: Only 1 in 5 candidates would apply to 1-star rated company. Female job seekers are 33 percent less likely to apply to a poorly rated company. 64 percent of consumers have stopped buying from brands tarnished by news about poor employee treatment.

Time Doesn’t Heal All Wounds: Adults laid off during the Great Recession were 65 percent more likely to still harbor a negative perception of that employer today, nearly a decade later.

With this December marking the 10yr Anniversary of the Great Recession, it’s a important moment to investigate how layoffs are being managed and communicated in the age when millennials (who surpassed Gen X in 2015) now make up the majority of the workforce and are on pace to comprise of 75 percent of the working population by 2020. How can companies prepare for the millennial-majority talent market primed to influence, and be influenced by, peer-written reviews?

Read more

Latest News

Read More

Mending the disconnect between what schools teach and what work demands

31 July 2025

Leadership

29 July 2025

Leadership can feel lonely at times, but it shouldn’t. Have a little empathy for yourself and ask for help when you need it. Now more...

Talent Management

29 July 2025

Deepfake interviews. Synthetic faces. Tampered documents. As generative AI reshapes identity fraud, traditional screening methods are being put to the test. Giant Screening CEO Mathew...

Newsletter

Receive the latest HR news and strategic content

Please note, as per the GDPR Legislation, we need to ensure you are ‘Opted In’ to receive updates from ‘theHRDIRECTOR’. We will NEVER sell, rent, share or give away your data to third parties. We only use it to send information about our products and updates within the HR space To see our Privacy Policy – click here

Latest HR Jobs

Brunel University London – Business Operations – Enabling ServicesSalary: £45,390 to £58,263 inclusive of London weighting, with potential to progress to £65,236 per annum through

University of YorkSalary: Competitive remuneration and benefits

University of East London – Strategic Development and Delivery directorate Salary: From £52,307 inclusive of London Weighting

Queen Mary University of London – IT Services DirectorateSalary: £54,617 to £60,901 per annum

Read the latest digital issue of theHRDIRECTOR for FREE

Read the latest digital issue of theHRDIRECTOR for FREE