I’m not in the position to lay anyone off at my current job so this is purely hypothetical, but being in this subreddit has got me thinking what would the ethical way be to handle a mass layoff?
US examples preferred plz, and you can ignore the legal aspect for the basis of this question. There are too many different rules in different states to consider, this is only a question about ethical conduct.
TLDR; How do you fire several hundred or thousand people in an ethical way, ignoring legal aspects?
Suggestions so far:
- Fire the executives first that caused the mass layoffs. A business shouldn’t get to this point and if it is someone at the top jacked up.
- Tell employees in person. If you can’t meet with each individual meet with them as a group. Make it an open forum so they can have their concerns heard.
- Try to weed out people who were already looking to leave first by announcing a severance package for those who voluntarily leave.