5 ms·

While sad, most employment is "at will". The employer can let go for no reason what so ever with a two week notice, by law

mindcrime 10y ago
How is that sad? I love the fact that I can quit my job and go take another job at any time. If the flip-side of that coin is that I can be fired at any time, then so be it.
- lima 10y ago
  Most people appreciate it once they've settled down and have family.
  - mindcrime 10y ago
    What, you think having a family means you want to be stuck in the same boring job for the rest of your life? Or that you won't still want to seek higher pay down the road? What if you have another kid? Job flexibility could come in handy...
    - hiddencost 10y ago
      Most people take many months to find a job, and it is an incredibly stressful and demoralizing experience.
      - mindcrime 10y ago
        So? We should end at-will employment so a few people don't have to experience the occasional "stressful and demoralizing experience"? I'm not buying it. Nobody said life was all sunshine and rainbows...
    - rincebrain 10y ago
      Family, in this case, generally means they appreciate the stability, and are willing to trade the slower mobility for the increased security.
- etblg 10y ago
  Works well when it's easy to find a job, doesn't work well when you get fired for no reason and you were working in a profession where you don't just get a job the next week. Also there are more possibilities to employment than American "any time for any reason" and European "at least a month either way". In Canada you have to have a justified cause to fire people or just give notice, and for quitting you customarily give 2 weeks notice (I'm not even sure if you're legally bound to).
  - mindcrime 10y ago
    Works well when it's easy to find a job, doesn't work well when you get fired for no reason and you were working in a profession where you don't just get a job the next week. Isn't putting aside savings to account for possible interruptions in employment simply prudent management of one's personal finances?
deleted 10y ago
[deleted]
shams93 10y ago
Most likely these people will get a decent severance package, in startups when they have layoffs often you're laid off being owed salary even though the salary may be 80% below market rate and you could be laid off simply to save money at the end of the project, engineers used to be precious back when everything required its own custom apache c module but these days engineers are very much disposible.
dvdhnt 10y ago
You're right. It's an example of the preferential treatment employers receive over employees.
sjg007 10y ago
Still have to follow the Warn Act.
lukealization 10y ago
A concept that is utterly foreign and bizarre to most other people in Western countries, including myself in New Zealand.
- CptJamesCook 10y ago
  Have you noticed how nearly all great companies are now being started in America. Wonder why?
  - madeofpalk 10y ago
    You think it's because of "at will" employment?
    - stale2002 10y ago
      At will employment is a symptom, not a cause. The reason why is be because starting a company in America is generally a good idea
    - ythn 10y ago
      No, it's because the companies aren't encumbered with a million layers of bureaucracy and regulation ensuring every single employee has every single possible safety net in the world preventing every single type of failure known.
      - inflagranti 10y ago
        Sure that must be the only reason, no-one would think of ever creating a company in socialist Europe. Having access to a huge, uniform market must not factor into this at all. Or any 100 other good reasons you're ignoring from a complex spectrum; no it must be the one and only one that fits your narrative.
    - adevine 10y ago
      Yes, that's part of it. It's a bit of a double-edged sword, but when it's easy to fire people, it also makes it a lot easier to hire them, because there is less of a risk when you make a mistake or need to change direction of your business. While it's an upheaval to be sure, the vast majority of these laid-off employees have in-demand skills in a growing industry. Who I really feel for is people who get laid off in shrinking industries, where it's basically a game of musical chairs and there are fewer seats each round.

mindcrime 10y ago

How is that sad? I love the fact that I can quit my job and go take another job at any time. If the flip-side of that coin is that I can be fired at any time, then so be it.

lima 10y ago
Most people appreciate it once they've settled down and have family.
- mindcrime 10y ago
  What, you think having a family means you want to be stuck in the same boring job for the rest of your life? Or that you won't still want to seek higher pay down the road? What if you have another kid? Job flexibility could come in handy...
  - hiddencost 10y ago
    Most people take many months to find a job, and it is an incredibly stressful and demoralizing experience.
    - mindcrime 10y ago
      So? We should end at-will employment so a few people don't have to experience the occasional "stressful and demoralizing experience"? I'm not buying it. Nobody said life was all sunshine and rainbows...
  - rincebrain 10y ago
    Family, in this case, generally means they appreciate the stability, and are willing to trade the slower mobility for the increased security.
etblg 10y ago
Works well when it's easy to find a job, doesn't work well when you get fired for no reason and you were working in a profession where you don't just get a job the next week. Also there are more possibilities to employment than American "any time for any reason" and European "at least a month either way". In Canada you have to have a justified cause to fire people or just give notice, and for quitting you customarily give 2 weeks notice (I'm not even sure if you're legally bound to).
- mindcrime 10y ago
  Works well when it's easy to find a job, doesn't work well when you get fired for no reason and you were working in a profession where you don't just get a job the next week. Isn't putting aside savings to account for possible interruptions in employment simply prudent management of one's personal finances?

deleted 10y ago

[deleted]

shams93 10y ago

Most likely these people will get a decent severance package, in startups when they have layoffs often you're laid off being owed salary even though the salary may be 80% below market rate and you could be laid off simply to save money at the end of the project, engineers used to be precious back when everything required its own custom apache c module but these days engineers are very much disposible.

dvdhnt 10y ago

You're right. It's an example of the preferential treatment employers receive over employees.

sjg007 10y ago

Still have to follow the Warn Act.

lukealization 10y ago

A concept that is utterly foreign and bizarre to most other people in Western countries, including myself in New Zealand.

CptJamesCook 10y ago
Have you noticed how nearly all great companies are now being started in America. Wonder why?
- madeofpalk 10y ago
  You think it's because of "at will" employment?
  - stale2002 10y ago
    At will employment is a symptom, not a cause. The reason why is be because starting a company in America is generally a good idea
  - ythn 10y ago
    No, it's because the companies aren't encumbered with a million layers of bureaucracy and regulation ensuring every single employee has every single possible safety net in the world preventing every single type of failure known.
    - inflagranti 10y ago
      Sure that must be the only reason, no-one would think of ever creating a company in socialist Europe. Having access to a huge, uniform market must not factor into this at all. Or any 100 other good reasons you're ignoring from a complex spectrum; no it must be the one and only one that fits your narrative.
  - adevine 10y ago
    Yes, that's part of it. It's a bit of a double-edged sword, but when it's easy to fire people, it also makes it a lot easier to hire them, because there is less of a risk when you make a mistake or need to change direction of your business. While it's an upheaval to be sure, the vast majority of these laid-off employees have in-demand skills in a growing industry. Who I really feel for is people who get laid off in shrinking industries, where it's basically a game of musical chairs and there are fewer seats each round.