JXAH

Since even a laid off employee can be useful to the organisation at a future date, many organisation try to make the layoff as painless as possible by hiring the services of an outplacement firm.

This firm identifies suitable opportunities for laid off employees in other companies and arrange for the resume to be sent and interview arranged. Since the employee has few other options, they usually accept this offer happily.

The job opportunities available are usually inversely proportionate to your age after you complete your basic degree or other educational qualification. When  you have no experience, there may be a lot of competition, but once you have 2-3 years experience, the number of opportunities available increase considerably.

After you cross a particular age, the number of vacancies available again decreases, since few companies are able to afford the higher salaries. Also most companies have a pyramidical structure.

Unlike manufacturing companies which usually have a strong trade union to fight for the rights of the worker, there is no union to support the cause of white collar workers in most companies. So the management wishing to sack an employee can just force them to resign.

Though the employee can refuse to resign, most employees submit their “resignation” letter since they are assured that they will receive atleast a part of the benefits due to them. Few employees have sufficient resources at their disposal to fight a large company in court. Also, it is much more difficult to get a job, if you are laid off than it is when you have resigned.

Though an organisation benefits in the short term from lower operating costs, in the long run layoffs adversely affect the image of the company. It also creates an atmosphere of uncertainty as the employees are worried that they will be affected next. This reduces their productivity and  employee morale.

Over a period of time, a layoff affects the ability of the company to attract suitable candidates, who may be needed for future growth as economic conditions improve. This is the reason why some companies have a tradition of not laying off any employee.

In some countries, companies directly tell their employees that they are being laid off due to adverse economic conditions and lack of profitability . The employee is informed about the layoff and expected to clear his or her desk and leave the office immediately.

In other countries, due to political factors and social conditioning, layoffs are far more difficult to implement, though they may be necessary for the survival of the organisation. Smaller organisation may lay off their workers without much fanafare, but layoffs in larger organisations are noticed by the media. So the employees are forced to submit a resignation letter.

One of the main attractions of a government job is that it is considered permanent , once you are confirmed and you draw a salary for the rest of your life.

Though the salary and growth opportunities for this job are less and the work is often monotonous in nature, many people prefer these jobs due to the security they offer. In some countries, influence is needed or bribes have to be paid to get these jobs.

Most colleges , especially professional colleges make it mandatory for students to complete summer jobs before they get their degree.  This is because  most educational systems lay a lot of emphasis on the theoretical aspects of the education and students have very little exposure to the practical aspects of how a business works.

By spending a month or two at a company, students gets useful exposure.  Some times , the organisation may offer the student a full time job when he or she  completes the formal education.

For most full time jobs,  the employee is expected to be present in office for eight hours or more.  Some times a business has work that can be completed only in a few hours.  In such cases , they may hire people to work on a part time basis.  Many of these part time helpers have other activities and are often students. They work after college or school hours , and the money they earn is used for their hobbies or education.  The experience they gain, helps them to get a full time job after they complete their education more easily.

Till last year, jobs in the financial sector were sought after.  Many students spent 4 years of their life studying to get an engineering degree and then proceeded to start a career in a totally unrelated field by doing an MBA .

Some one rightly pointed out, the closer you are to the money, the higher you are likely to be paid.  So investment bankers who handled millions of dollars (not too wisely as it turned out) often received bonuses of thousands of dollars just for manipulating numbers.

In the beginning a persons career, when he or she has just graduated from college , it is usually difficult to get a job. The situation is worse during a recession as companies try to reduce their staff, and hire few freshers.

Most smaller employers prefer to hire people  with at least a little experience as they do not have to train them in the basics of how businesses work. On the other hand, big companies conduct extensive training programs for trainees who have just completed their education.  They prefer to hire through campus recruitment.