On the news I see clips of government workers who have just lost their jobs milling in confusion. As I watch them filling streets, courtyards, and hallways with their boxes in hand, I realize that they really have no idea what just happened to them. The concept of layoffs didn’t touch their world and they certainly had no idea they could actually lose their job in a matter of moments.

It just never occurred to them.

Familiar with Layoffs

I feel sorry for those government workers.

Having spent my career in high tech, I am only too familiar with layoffs from both sides of the desk. I started in tech with minicomputers and ended with telecommunications and in that time, the employment climate changed completely.

At first, executives saw layoffs as shameful, proof that they had not done their jobs well. By the end, layoffs had become almost a badge of honor, demonstrating a corporate dedication to the twin warped concepts of lean-and-mean and doing-more-with-less.

Multiple Reasons for Layoffs

I saw and participated in layoffs for a variety of reasons:

• The company hired a new CEO and he cut the company’s staff by 25% overnight.
• A new CEO hired a new VP of Marketing and he wanted to bring in “his guy” to do my job. His guy was more expensive than I was. That meant the company laid me off along with another person so they could afford the new salary.
• A newly hired VP of Marketing lived in Texas and didn’t want to move to Massachusetts. So in two fell swoops he laid off the entire marketing department. Then he reconstituted it 1,800 miles away from headquarters—and everyone Marketing worked with daily.
• The startup was running out of cash.
• Startup #2 was running out of cash.
• A publicly-traded $3B company went from being run (badly) by the founder’s son to a “turn-around guy” who finished the demolition process.

Laying Myself Off

At that last job, I walked into a conference room to face two big stacks of manila folders. On them were the names of everyone in my department, from managers on down. I was told I had to lay them all off. I argued that this would have the effect of crippling a major revenue stream but they didn’t want it hear it. They left me no choice but to do as ordered. Over the next two weeks, I laid off my entire staff, including a blind man and a man in a wheelchair.

My VP told me I was safe because I was just the kind of person they needed to rebuild the company. But I didn’t trust him or the rest of the executive team. Sure enough, a few weeks later my boss apologized and told me they had to let me go. He had no idea how to go about the process, however, because he hadn’t actually had to implement the paperwork. So, I did it; effectively laying myself off. That’s a dubious distinction.

Empathizing with the Workers

I empathize with those government workers because I know what it feels like to lose your job, your salary, and your benefits in one surprise meeting. Some of them, like park rangers and state department employees, also lose their housing.

What makes it worse is knowing that the fault lies with people who will do just fine and move on.

Having created the havoc, they won’t worry about paying the mortgage, the auto loan, or the orthodontist’s bills. They won’t have to cancel a vacation. No one will tell them a few weeks before Christmas that things won’t be so merry this year.

No, they go off to have drinks with colleagues and commiserate about what a terrible day they had, laying off all those poor folks. They never look back at the damage they wrought.

Both Hands Full

On the one hand, I envy those government workers their innocence in thinking the job was theirs for however long they wanted it. By the time I reached my last job, I kept nothing in my office I couldn’t fit into a single box. On the other hand, I feel sorry for them because I don’t think anyone should experience being laid off.

The only workers I don’t feel sorry for are those who voted for this. The Republicans had no secrets; they even published a manual, Project 2025, on what they planned to do. They laid all this out in detail, yet millions of people whose jobs and lives would be affected voted for them anyway.

They had a variety of reasons:

• “I didn’t think they would actually do it.”
• “It never crossed my mind it would happen to me.”
• “He was the best man for the job.”
• “This is so unfair.”

Sorry, MAGA folks. Elections have consequences and you just experienced one. We didn’t get a chance to vote for our futures and you did. You blew it.

Things to Learn from Layoffs

As for the others, I hope that they, their families, and their neighbors are learning from this experience. I also hope they are learning a few specific things:

• You can’t separate an evil person from his policies. Evil men do not do good deeds.
• Voters don’t get to pick and choose which policies a candidate will implement after he/she wins. Assume they will all become reality before you vote.
• Cultural issues are the bait they use to distract you so they can pick your pocket.
• You can’t assume that bad things will happen only to people you don’t like.

Above all, be careful what you vote for. You may get it good and hard.