What to do after a layoff, from dealing with your 401(k) and health insurance to negotiating severance

Tech Insider : Economy, Business, Technology
Collage showing workers' fear of recession, layoffs
Layoffs are generally stressful, yet taking certain steps can help you regain a sense of control.

Getty Images; Jenny Chang-Rodriguez/BI

You could burn through $50,000 covering an unemployment stint in today's market

Tech Insider : Economy, Business, Style
Joanelle Cobos (left), Clair Todd (right)
Joanelle Cobos (left) and Clair Todd (right) prepared financially for layoffs but faced a challenging job market.

Joanelle Cobos (left), Clair Todd (right)

I lost my job at 58 when DOGE dismantled USAID. A year on, I've landed on my feet but still feel survivor's guilt.

Tech Insider : Politics, Business
Jay Gulledge in Pakistan
Jay Gulledge, 59, worked for USAID until March 2025.

Courtesy of Jay Gulledge

Andrew Yang says mass white-collar layoffs are closer than people think

Tech Insider : Technology, Business
Andrew Yang, founder of the Forward Party and CEO of Noble Mobile, points while speaking against a black backdrop.
Andrew Yang is the CEO of Noble Mobile and founded the Forward Party.

PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images

I got laid off and used my severance money to launch a startup. Here's why it felt like less of a gamble than pursuing an MBA.

Tech Insider : Business, Sports, Technology
Sam Perry headshot
Sam Perry, 40, was laid off in 2022.

Courtesy of Sam Perry

Meta says it won't chop the bottom 5% performers this year

Tech Insider : Business
Mark Zuckerberg
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO and founder of Meta

David Paul Morris/Bloomberg/Getty Images/Reuters

He's worked decades in tech and wrote a book on vibe coding. He predicts 50% of Big Tech engineers will be laid off.

Tech Insider : Business
AI is depicted above human workers.
Steve Yegge predicted a 50% cut in Big Tech engineering jobs as companies spend more on AI and less on labor.

Andrii Yalanskyi/Getty Images

Google offers buyouts to staff in its business unit who aren't 'all in'

Tech Insider : Business, Technology
Google chief business officer Philipp Schindler
Google chief business officer Philipp Schindler.

Matthias Balk/picture alliance via Getty Images

GoFundMe campaigns for laid-off Washington Post employees have now passed $700,000

Tech Insider : Business
Washington Post employees, along with supporters from the newsroom union, rally outside the newspaper's office building and hold up copies of the Washington Post.
The Washington Post's employees and supporters rallied outside the newspaper's office building on Thursday.

Oliver Contreras / AFP via Getty Images

Jeff Bezos made a mess at the Washington Post. It's up to him to fix it.

Tech Insider : Business, Style
Jeff Bezos, photographed during his wedding to Lauren Sanchez in Venice, Italy, June 2025
Jeff Bezos has been silent during the Washington Post's recent turmoil. But it's his newspaper, and his responsibility to fix it.

Ernesto Ruscio/GC Images

Subscribe to Layoffs