4

I'm starting to interview again after being laid off in May, starting a new job in June, which just has 3 rounds of layoffs in the past month and is feeling very shaky. With all the chatter around people getting laid off before even starting a role, being laid off within weeks of starting, I'm thinking this is something I'd like to discuss with potential employers purely to see how they respond and handle the question. I know I can't take their answer as gospel, but I think it's a worthy discussion to have.

Improve this question
5
  • 1
    Good question.... I would personally do research outside of the interview to answer it... I wonder how to approach it delicately during an interview.
    – Questor
    Commented Oct 27, 2023 at 22:38
  • That question may be appropriate during an interview. But, I would think that the interviewers may feel somewhat uncomfortable to answer that question as they don't want to be the ones who say bad things about their company (if there were layoffs in the past or recently). I would recommend that you do research on the internet to get good answers.
    – Job_September_2020
    Commented Oct 28, 2023 at 2:51
  • 1
    You may want to add a country. In my country, due to strong labor laws, layoffs are rare and a sign of a failing company, while in the US I see waves of layoffs coming in every other year by companies that are doing great financially. We have no idea how common layoffs are in your country or what they entail in terms of compensation or job security.
    – nvoigt ♦
    Commented Oct 28, 2023 at 6:41
  • 1
    And many companies lay off in one section of the company while hiring in another section that is profitable and growing. How the interviewers respond is the key, not whether or not the company had layoffs.
    – David R
    Commented Oct 28, 2023 at 14:30
  • Having been in this situation before I can tell you with 99% certainty that if they are planning any layoffs they will not tell you
    – solarflare
    Commented Oct 31, 2023 at 3:36

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
5

What is a reasonable way to ask if a company has had layoffs in the past year when interviewing?

It's perfectly reasonable to be direct with your questions.

Something like "Has your company had layoffs recently? I went through that myself and wouldn't want to get into an iffy situation again." is reasonable, and understandable.

And if you have further interviews, it's reasonable to ask to speak with some of your future peers. You can often get more insight into the company from folks who would be at your level.

That said, you should do your research on the company before interviewing. A visit to something like GlassDoor or a quick Google search can often disclose the fact if layoffs occurred.

Improve this answer
2
  • 1
    In addition, the LinkedIn profile of a company also shows the historical and current the headcount (or total employees) of a company. This happens because when someone joins or leaves a company, they will update their LinkedIn profile accordingly. Consequently, LinkedIn grabs that info, and shows the total employees info on the company LinkedIn profile. Then, you can find out if the headcount goes up or down historically.
    – Job_September_2020
    Commented Oct 28, 2023 at 2:52
  • 1
    @Job_September_2020 That is based on the assumption that all or at least most employees have a LinkedIn profile and keep it up to date. That may be a reasonable assumption in some fields but is very wrong in others.
    – quarague
    Commented Oct 31, 2023 at 14:00

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .