Fired by email: Breaking down the human cost of impersonal terminations
Picture it: You’re checking your morning email over coffee when you spot a message from HR with the subject line “Important Update Regarding Your Position.” Your heart sinks as you realize your career just ended in an inbox.
Unfortunately, that scenario is playing out across America, and at an alarming scale.
According to a survey of more than 1,000 recently laid-off workers by career website Zety, the workplace is handling worker separations with all the warmth of a parking ticket. More than half were delivered through email (29%) or a phone call (28%), while only 30% involved face-to-face conversations — meaning that HR has largely digitized one of the most consequential moments in a person’s life.
Even worse, 6% of workers discovered their fate through office gossip, 5% learned by way of a video call, and 2% only realized they’d been terminated when their access to Slack and email was cut off.
The research reveals that 21% of workers were completely blindsided by their layoffs, even though 89% felt the process was handled fairly overall. That disconnect suggests that while employees tend to understand the reasoning behind layoffs, they think they should be handled with more care.
When asked what would have improved their experiences, 65% wanted better severance packages, while 64% sought career support and outplacement services, 49% desired improved communication from leadership and 35% wanted more advance notice
What are best practices? Zety recommends:
Prioritizing in-person conversations. Yes, it’s more time-consuming and emotionally challenging, but it demonstrates respect for the individual and the relationship.
Providing career support. Outplacement services, LinkedIn recommendations and networking introductions can transform a painful ending into a bridge to new opportunities.
Communicating the business rationale. Employees can handle the truth; they can’t handle feeling deceived or dismissed.
Teaching managers compassionate communication. The person delivering the news may be as uncomfortable as the person receiving it. Equip your leaders with the skills and scripts they need to handle these conversations with grace.
The bottom line is that HR professionals have the power to influence not just the what and why of layoffs, but the how. In an era where talent is increasingly mobile and employer brands are scrutinized on social media, the way departures are handled may be just as important as how welcoming new employees is.
As Wendy Sellers, an HR consultant and trainer who also writes the blog The HR Lady, points out, “Upholding your own behavioral expectations — even in tough moments — demonstrates that values guide every decision and safeguards your brand image.”
Meanwhile, workplace strategist Mita Mallick, author of the forthcoming book The Devil Emails at Midnight: What Good Leaders Can Learn From Bad Bosses, has a simple message for employers that rely on technology to deliver bad news: Don’t do it.
As she puts it, “A large layoff is no excuse to not offer in-person conversations and treat your employees with the kindness and respect they deserve.”