4 ms·

I am a software engineer and I am a little worried seeing all these layoffs. No company will have 100% layoff, so it could be possible to weather this downturn?

I am a software engineer and I am a little worried seeing all these layoffs. No company will have 100% layoff, so it could be possible to weather this downturn? What could be the best strategy to get through this difficult period?

COGlory 4y ago
This happens every decade or so. Don't live beyond your means and you will be OK, even if you get laid off.
heartbreak 4y ago
These layoffs are because someone bought the company and saddled it with enough debt that it’ll take a billion dollars per year to pay the interest. This is nothing like Stripe’s 14% layoffs from elsewhere on the HN homepage.
- ummonk 4y ago
  Nevertheless it does add to all the hiring freezes and layoffs we are seeing from other large companies (including, as you mentioned, Stripe).
MexicanJoe 4y ago
I don't know the American market, but they are screaming for qualified developers in Europe and Asia where I work. I have been around long enough to know that if you are a good developer there will always be work for you. Especially if you are not super specialized and open to working with people.
- Godel_unicode 4y ago
  There are plenty of highly paid dev jobs in the US too, it’s just that the market isn’t river-of-lava-on-the-sun hot like it has been the last 10+ years.
throwawaysleep 4y ago
- Godel_unicode 4y ago
  This is extremely bad advice. Do not do this.
- bitbuilder 4y ago
  >layoffs don’t consider individual peformance This is not true. The way layoffs almost always work is the CEO tells their VPs they need to cut, say, 10% of their staff. The VPs tell their Directors they need to cut 10% of their staff. And so on, and so forth. And everyone managing people at every step of the way has an unofficial stack ranking in the back of their mind, and they just cut the names at the bottom of that ranking. The person turning in half assed work while being obviously overemployed will be the first to go.
  - candiodari 4y ago
    Yeah right. This assumes no politics. Reality, and yes, I've been a consultant for too long is that first the consultants, temps, ... go. These are the best and the worst workers. Then whoever is up for a promotion gets fired. Because, well I'm not sure. Somewhere between threatening the boss' job and jealousy. This causes a number of not-layed-off people to also leave (just read the comments in this thread to see a few people that will do that). Whatever hope your company ever had of good morale is gone and will never return. Everyone hates each other from this point forward, and hierarchy is determined purely on ability to fire and pay. Then the consultants get rehired for 20% higher pay, the worst workers first. Then the temps for 10% less, because work isn't getting done, and management finds out once again they never knew what the company is actually doing, that everyone used layoffs for their personal gain, and it's created an accelerating disaster. None of this fixes the problems, whether it's customer service or team morale, that the layoffs created, at best they slow the downward slide. And I guarantee that it'll turn out to be a lot more expensive than never doing the layoff in the first place.
    - 4y ago
zanagon 4y ago
move to a company which actually makes money, preferably doing something anti-cyclical. For example, whatever company conned Musk into thinking that they can assess the value of engineers immediately based on git contributions is probably going to have a great business, first going into companies and selling them the software that lets them do that. Then later when it turns out they fired the wrong people they can sell consultants to replace them. Then later when it turns out the consultants can't take over the systems well enough without the fired engineers they will be able to sell reduction services yet again. It will take four years and several big bankruptcies before people catch on that they are being conned. By that time there will be other companies coming up that you can jump ship to.
LastTrain 4y ago
Find ways to be better at your job. Speak up more. Take some initiative, solve a problem that needs solved. Be friendly. These are things we should always be doing, so the best time to do them was a year ago. The next best time is now.
rockinghigh 4y ago
We went through a similar period in 2008. It's best to live below your means and increase your savings. It may take longer to find a new role when thousands of candidates are also looking and large companies have frozen hiring.
adam_arthur 4y ago
Labor supply will increase considerably, while labor demand declines. Comp packages will decline across the board, or at the very least stagnate for years. If you work for a fairly valued, profitable company, you’re likely to keep your job. If you work for a highly unprofitable and overvalued moonshot company, you likely won’t
refurb 4y ago
The best way to weather it is to sock away as much cash from your current job while times are good. If a Bay Area techie at a FAANG can't swing a half a year of unemployment after working the Bay for 5+ years, something is wrong.
WalterBright 4y ago
Save a chunk of each paycheck.

COGlory 4y ago

This happens every decade or so. Don't live beyond your means and you will be OK, even if you get laid off.

heartbreak 4y ago

These layoffs are because someone bought the company and saddled it with enough debt that it’ll take a billion dollars per year to pay the interest. This is nothing like Stripe’s 14% layoffs from elsewhere on the HN homepage.

ummonk 4y ago
Nevertheless it does add to all the hiring freezes and layoffs we are seeing from other large companies (including, as you mentioned, Stripe).

MexicanJoe 4y ago

I don't know the American market, but they are screaming for qualified developers in Europe and Asia where I work. I have been around long enough to know that if you are a good developer there will always be work for you. Especially if you are not super specialized and open to working with people.

Godel_unicode 4y ago
There are plenty of highly paid dev jobs in the US too, it’s just that the market isn’t river-of-lava-on-the-sun hot like it has been the last 10+ years.

throwawaysleep 4y ago

Godel_unicode 4y ago
This is extremely bad advice. Do not do this.
bitbuilder 4y ago
>layoffs don’t consider individual peformance This is not true. The way layoffs almost always work is the CEO tells their VPs they need to cut, say, 10% of their staff. The VPs tell their Directors they need to cut 10% of their staff. And so on, and so forth. And everyone managing people at every step of the way has an unofficial stack ranking in the back of their mind, and they just cut the names at the bottom of that ranking. The person turning in half assed work while being obviously overemployed will be the first to go.
- candiodari 4y ago
  Yeah right. This assumes no politics. Reality, and yes, I've been a consultant for too long is that first the consultants, temps, ... go. These are the best and the worst workers. Then whoever is up for a promotion gets fired. Because, well I'm not sure. Somewhere between threatening the boss' job and jealousy. This causes a number of not-layed-off people to also leave (just read the comments in this thread to see a few people that will do that). Whatever hope your company ever had of good morale is gone and will never return. Everyone hates each other from this point forward, and hierarchy is determined purely on ability to fire and pay. Then the consultants get rehired for 20% higher pay, the worst workers first. Then the temps for 10% less, because work isn't getting done, and management finds out once again they never knew what the company is actually doing, that everyone used layoffs for their personal gain, and it's created an accelerating disaster. None of this fixes the problems, whether it's customer service or team morale, that the layoffs created, at best they slow the downward slide. And I guarantee that it'll turn out to be a lot more expensive than never doing the layoff in the first place.
  - 4y ago

zanagon 4y ago

move to a company which actually makes money, preferably doing something anti-cyclical. For example, whatever company conned Musk into thinking that they can assess the value of engineers immediately based on git contributions is probably going to have a great business, first going into companies and selling them the software that lets them do that. Then later when it turns out they fired the wrong people they can sell consultants to replace them. Then later when it turns out the consultants can't take over the systems well enough without the fired engineers they will be able to sell reduction services yet again. It will take four years and several big bankruptcies before people catch on that they are being conned. By that time there will be other companies coming up that you can jump ship to.

LastTrain 4y ago

Find ways to be better at your job. Speak up more. Take some initiative, solve a problem that needs solved. Be friendly. These are things we should always be doing, so the best time to do them was a year ago. The next best time is now.

rockinghigh 4y ago

We went through a similar period in 2008. It's best to live below your means and increase your savings. It may take longer to find a new role when thousands of candidates are also looking and large companies have frozen hiring.

adam_arthur 4y ago

Labor supply will increase considerably, while labor demand declines. Comp packages will decline across the board, or at the very least stagnate for years. If you work for a fairly valued, profitable company, you’re likely to keep your job. If you work for a highly unprofitable and overvalued moonshot company, you likely won’t

refurb 4y ago

The best way to weather it is to sock away as much cash from your current job while times are good. If a Bay Area techie at a FAANG can't swing a half a year of unemployment after working the Bay for 5+ years, something is wrong.

WalterBright 4y ago

Save a chunk of each paycheck.