Tips On Dealing With A Laid-Off Spouse And On Punishing Performers
Posted by
eli
on 9/03/09• Categorized as Business Advice
image from www.sxc.hu
Advice On Dealing With A Laid-off Spouse
Because of recession, lay-offs and retrenchments are not uncommon.
Has your spouse been laid-off?
Then resist the temptation to immediately hand over a list of what to do for him/her, like doing the household chores.
Your spouse will need time to adjust, and to absorb the shock before helping out more at home and before beginning to look for another job.
It’s also not a good idea to make major decision or spread the news among friends and relatives in the first few days. Silence is golden.
In this situation, a more positive approach is to stress your love, understanding, and support. It is good also to attend to your own needs and rights during this difficult period.
Advice To Managers: Don’t Punish Performers.
Don’t inadvertently punish your employees for doing good what they are supposed to do. Example: A talented and efficient worker who does well at a difficult task, is given all the department’s most difficult tasks-but little increase in recognition.
Result: He / she leaves because of the lack of appreciation.
Don’t let this happen to your company.
good and helpful article, especially on not to punish good performers. when i was working for a food company before my boss assigned me many tasks, telling me that i could do it. unfair because my colleagues were inefficient and yet we received same salary.
thanks for posting. i’m not a blogger, just your reader who likes to browse the web from time to time and visit your blog to read your interesting stuff.
Great advice. I’ve had the misfortune of being in both situations. It took me a little while to get used to being out of work. Even now, I still get up at 6:00am.
@ Libby, thanks for visiting my blog and making a comment.
@ John, oh, I didn’t know you have experienced the two situations. Anyways, no setback is ever final. Everything is just temporary. I know you can manage and get a job soon. By the way, you have a good blog. I was entertained reading your posts. Thanks for visiting my blog and commenting on my post.
Hi eli,
Heard much about you from Lainy (of Lainy’s Musings).
Am here to request you to collect your Award at:
http://dfoolonthehill.com/post/the-friendship-blog-award-from-david-funk
Wish you a great weekend there.
I like your advice to managers, but I don’t know very many that would actually take it. When times get tough rewards go out the window and companies will ditch better-paid, experienced employees for young cheap ones most every time. Getting old is not for wimps.
what a timely blog post. i hope my mom’s boss gets to read it.
she’s one of those “performers” who gets “punished.” when her co-workers work slow and they can’t meet their deadline, she’s asked to “help” them finish their quota for the day. she would then have to finish her share PLUS the others’- which often leaves her really tired at the day’s end. she does receive *some* recognition but sadly it is not translated into monetary benefits and no appropriate action is done to sanction her erring co-workers…
This is a very interesting post. Having been both an employee and a manager myself at different times in my working life, i know how it feels to be “punished” by having to compensate for underperforming colleagues.
On the other hand, there managers out there who give extra work/responsibilities to those who are performing better than the others because they know that these people are reliable and will do the job efficiently. The employee, can see this as either a ‘punishment” as you pointed out above. Or as a way to leverage his skills and capabilities with the company and his bosses. These extra work should be documented and later on should be used as a basis for asking for an additional pay or promotion. The key word there is to ASK for it.
Now, as an employee and you’ve done more than your fair share and have proven yourself as an asset to the company, it is definitely alright to expect appreciation and or any form of reward. After all, the time you spend on doing extra work, is time LESS spent for your family and other personal stuff. If your bosses or the company do not give you the credit that is due, then it may be a good time to think about how you can leverage your skills somewhere else.
The same goes for the laid off spouse. When the shock wears off, it’s an excellent time to take stock of what you have – the knowledge and skills you’ve gained so far from your previous job/s. And use these to plan and prepare for the challenges that you want to take on next.