Layoff Survivor Sickness: What It Is and How to Manage It

Laying off employees brings stress to everyone in an organization. Of course, the dismissed individuals bear the heaviest burden, but managers must keep morale and productivity up, HR must conduct the event, and upper management worries about the aftershock. However, layoff survivor sickness is one of the most dreaded consequences of a workforce reduction event.

In this article, we’ll explore what layoff survivor sickness is, who is affected by it, and what HR teams can do to help staff overcome those issues and become happy and productive again.

Layoff survivor sickness, also known as layoff survivor guilt, is the emotional and psychological distress that remaining employees experience at a company that’s been through a layoff. While they retain their jobs, those individuals may feel a mix of relief, guilt, anxiety, sadness, and even a sense of responsibility for their dismissed colleagues.

Survivors often question why they were spared, leading to feelings of unfairness or unworthiness, especially if they believe others were more deserving. This emotional toll can also include stress over increased workloads, fear of future layoffs, and a sense of instability at work.

In addition to guilt, layoff survivors may experience symptoms similar to post-traumatic stress, such as difficulty concentrating, loss of motivation, and emotional exhaustion. The modified work environment, with fewer colleagues and high expectations, can make them feel isolated and pressured.

In the end, layoff survivor sickness not only impacts the employees’ mental health, but also affects productivity, morale, and long-term job satisfaction. If left unaddressed, this situation can lead to burnout, disengagement, and turnover, destabilizing the remaining workforce even more.

In Canada, layoff survivor sickness is a growing concern. Every year, a sizable number of Canadian workers in industries like tech or manufacturing are impacted by workforce restructuring, due to economic shifts, market demands, or internal reorganizations. As a result, the negative effects of those events on individuals have become a subject of discussion between employers, HR teams, and mental health professionals.

Statistical insight: Each year, about 5% to 10% of Canadian employees experience a permanent layoff.
Source: Statistics Canada, 2022

For HR professionals managing layoff survivor sickness among employees, there are a few actions that can help to alleviate the stress. Some of the most efficient are: helping individuals acknowledge their emotions, holding stimulating conversations, setting boundaries at work, prioritising self-care and wellbeing, recognizing that layoffs are a fundamental part of doing business, focusing on growth and resilience, and supporting former colleagues. Let’s see those tips in detail.

It’s natural to feel guilty if you survive a layoff while some esteemed colleagues and talented teammates are let go. One key step to overcoming this situation is to accept those emotions instead of suppressing them – and HR teams can help employees to process those feelings.

One crucial element is permitting individuals to experience those feelings without judgment. In that case, stay by their side and reinforce that there’s no shame in feeling guilty but, at the same time, start paving the way for them to feel confident. Let people know their future also matters and that employees are never laid off for a fault of their own.

Guilt can fester when kept inside. That’s why employees should share their feelings with colleagues, managers, trusted friends, mentors, or even a therapist. Sometimes, just talking about those feelings of guilt or discomfort can help people process them and gain perspective.

More importantly, when employees talk to someone else in their company about their emotions, they’ll probably realize other people are feeling the same way. By realizing they’re going through an experience in common, everyone will find it easier to overcome their layoff survivor sickness.

A common sign of layoff survivor sickness is that remaining staff feel pressured to prove their worth, leading to overwork and people pushing themselves too hard to “earn” their positions. Overworking isn’t a sustainable way to cope with this situation, possibly leading to burnout.

HR teams must encourage employees to be mindful of their workload by setting healthy boundaries and prioritizing their well-being. Sticking to a healthy work routine is the best way to ensure people are in a strong position to handle the changes and responsibilities ahead.

As we’ve seen, layoff surviving sickness is a clear pathway to burnout and work-related stress. If you’re an HR professional, one action you can take to mitigate this issue is to incentivize people to look out for themselves and improve their mental and physical health.

According to Health Canada, one of the main activities to avoid stress is moving: walking, exercising, or focusing on hobbies such as gardening. Employees can also learn relaxation exercises to release pressure, like deep breathing and body stretching. Meditation and progressive relaxation are other techniques that help people to take their minds off their problems.

It’s crucial that employees understand that layoffs are always a result of financial or strategic decisions and not because someone’s job is more valuable than another’s. Needless to say, this is another issue that HR professionals can bring to people’s attention to help ease their stress.

So, if an employee expresses concerns about the motive of someone being laid off, inform them of the real reason in an empathetic but straightforward way. Understanding that layoffs happen outside the departing employees’ control can help reduce the guilt that surviving staff may feel.

When the previous point is made clear, one next step HR can take is to guide employees toward planning their future and use the layoff experience as an opportunity to grow. Help people to identify what skills they want to develop, so they’re better prepared for future challenges.

Individuals may want to build professional abilities and obtain new knowledge, or gain resilience on a personal level to cope with similar events in the future. Whatever the case is, shifting the mindset from guilt to self-improvement can build a path toward a positive environment.

Reaching out to those who were laid off is a good way to alleviate the surviving employees’ guilt and mitigate layoff survivor sickness across the board. As HR, you should be there for people who want to offer help through networking, giving recommendations, or providing emotional support.

Some of the surviving staff might feel shy about reaching out, out of fear of being intrusive at a delicate moment. In that case, let them know there are ways of being proactive and tactful at the same time, turning those negative emotions into meaningful actions for their former colleagues.

There’s no cookie-cutter way of managing layoff survivor sickness. Everyone’s different, so if you feel the tips we offer here won’t do a great job with your staff, don’t hesitate to customize them to your needs and the characteristics of your organization.

It’s also important to acknowledge that layoff guilt is normal, so you should act naturally and empathetically with people suffering from it. However, if you don’t feel fully equipped to handle it alone, you can get external help. Discuss with management the possibility of seeking mental health professionals, such as therapists or counsellors, to assist in the task.

Remember that communication is probably the main coping mechanism for layoff survival sickness. Keep an eye on staff and ensure people are not suffering in silence with their feelings. Getting them to discuss their issues is an essential step to help them overcome their guilt.

Finally, if your organization needs a strategic partner to help in any workforce reduction events, check out the benefits of Careerminds. Our modern outplacement services can help your departing staff find their next meaningful jobs, while the surviving employees feel more secure and motivated about their future. Contact us and talk with one of our experts today.

Rafael Spuldar

Rafael is a content writer, editor, and strategist with over 20 years of experience working with digital media, marketing agencies, and Tech companies. He started his career as a journalist: his past jobs included some of the world's most renowned media organizations, such as the BBC and Thomson Reuters. After shifting into content marketing, he specialized in B2B content, mainly in the Tech and SaaS industries. In this field, Rafael could leverage his previously acquired skills (as an interviewer, fact-checker, and copy editor) to create compelling, valuable, and performing content pieces for various companies. Rafael is into cinema, music, literature, food, wine, and sports (mainly soccer, tennis, and NBA).