Redundancy and how it can affect you!
There has been a lot of change over the last year in the island with many people losing their jobs, and quite a few have been through redundancy. If this is something you’ve experienced or are worried about, then please read on.
Having been made redundant myself in March 2021 I can honestly say my first thought walking away from the initial conversation was how am I going to pay my bills. Then came what I can only describe as grief. When you think of grief, most of us assume we only feel it when someone we love has died but grief can happen for many other reasons too and losing a job is definitely one of them, especially as in my case I had a job I really enjoyed in an industry where I knew I made a difference.
I went through all the emotions associated with grief, anger, denial, bargaining, depression and after spinning around from one to the other I finally felt acceptance. The depression/low mood stuck with me for most of that initial first week or two, whilst I flitted between the others. The anger subsided quite quickly as luckily, I’m not naturally someone who gets angry but I did feel very disappointed, which I’ve been told is far worse! Disappointed in myself for not picking up the obvious signs, but were they obvious, who knows? As part of the redundancy process, and it is a process, I was given the opportunity to see if I could potentially keep my job but on reduced hours. Now for some people that would have been a viable option but sadly not for me so the redundancy was confirmed, and I received my letter stating that my last day at work would be in 5 weeks’ time. If I can impart two words of advice, firstly I would suggest you talk things through with JACS as they are the people who will see you through the redundancy process. JACS and can advise you on what has been discussed, the actual process and can answer any questions you may have, secondly, take a breath. Whilst it can seem huge, you will be OK and there are options open to you.
There is light at the end of the tunnel, it can be hard to see it though when you’re going through the motions of redundancy, the more you talk the more you realise that you’re not alone. For help finding a job that you want to do, speak to an expert. They may help you see a path that you’d not considered for yourself.