After reading Chapter 17, I came across the Competing Through Sustainability article called “Managing after the Layoffs.” This article talks about how more and more companies have engaged in layoffs as a necessary component of reducing costs. Many employees feel tremendous uncertainty as they observe their companies’ downsizings. Trust in management is central to employee morale and this “fire at will” practice to cope with the economic downturn does not allow many employees to trust in management. This article also talks about strategies for building sustainable relationships with the workforce. These strategies involve quick and easy communication, allowing for emotional response, addressing work frustrations due to the cutbacks, demonstrating continuing long-term interest in the careers of the surviving employees, and assess whether the strategies are working, don’t guess.
I can relate this article to previous contributions I have turned in. Many companies in the United States resort to layoffs to cut back on costs through the “fire at will” practice. One article I previously read explained how this “fire at will” practice was outlawed in China and it also showed how the Chinese companies and firms coped with the economic downturn. Another article I also read showed how Indian companies coped with the economic downturn by using slower rates of salary increase and reconstruction. Maybe it is time for American companies to use or at least try these alternative ways to cope with the economic downturn that have been used by foreign companies.
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