After layoffs: when you’re the one who stayed

Relief is natural. You still have your income and your routine. Feeling relieved does not make you selfish, and it doesn’t mean you don’t care about the people who left.

You may feel guilty for keeping your job, especially if a coworker has a family or fewer savings. That guilt often comes from caring about others. Remind yourself that you didn’t make the decision.

You may miss lunch buddies, a trusted manager or simply the way things used to be. Give yourself permission to grieve the team you had.

After one round of layoffs, many people worry another is coming. Living with that uncertainty can keep your stress system switched on. In 2025, workers who said their workplace felt uncertain were over three times as likely to say work was harming their mental health.

You may feel angry about how the news was shared, who was chosen, or how leaders talked about it. Anger often points to something you value, like fairness or loyalty. It is okay to feel it and to find safe ways to express it.

Some people stop caring as much about work, or keep coworkers at a distance in case they lose them too. This can be a way of protecting yourself. If it lasts a long time, it may be a sign of burnout or low mood.

Your manager may be able to help you agree priorities and adjust your workload.

Things you might say

• “With Sam’s work added, I can’t do everything to the same standard. Which three things matter most?”
• “What can we pause or drop for now?”
• “Can we review this again in a month?”

List the tasks you took over and roughly how long they take. Seeing it on paper helps you and your manager have a realistic conversation, instead of you quietly working late.

After layoffs, many people work longer hours hoping to look “too valuable to cut”. In the short term this may feel safer. Over months, it can lead to exhaustion. Say no when your workload is already full, and take your breaks.

Questions you can ask

• “Are more changes planned, and when will we know?”
• “How will the work of people who left be handled?”
• “What support is available for those of us who stayed?”

Managers may not have all the answers. But asking can show leaders what people need to hear.

Ideas

• Set times to check company news or chat threads, instead of all day
• Notice catastrophising and name it: “That’s a guess, not a fact.”
• Step away from conversations that spiral

It is understandable if you trust your employer less now. You can decide how much loyalty feels right for you. Some people find a new balance: doing good work, while keeping more of their identity and energy for life outside the job.

Try

• “I’m so sorry. It won’t be the same without you.”
• “I’d love to stay in touch. Coffee next week?”
• “If you’d like a reference or an introduction, I’m happy to help.”

Try to avoid

• “Everything happens for a reason.”
• “At least you got a payout.”
• Complaining about your heavier workload to them
• Sharing gossip about how they were chosen

Ideas

• Offer to be a reference or write a recommendation
• Pass on job openings you hear about
• Introduce them to people in your network
• Point them to their state’s Rapid Response services for help with benefits and job search

Ideas

• A regular bedtime and wake time
• A daily walk or other movement
• Time with friends who aren’t coworkers
• A hobby that is just for you

Small steps that build security

• Update your CV or résumé and online profiles
• Build up savings, even a little at a time
• Keep in touch with your wider network
• Write down your skills and recent wins

Having a plan B can lower anxiety, because “what if” has an answer. It doesn’t mean you must leave.

Think about what helped you through hard times before, and use those tools again. Recognising when you need extra support is a coping skill too.

In the U.S., the WARN Act requires some employers to give 60 days’ notice before a qualifying plant closing or mass layoff. Each state also has a Rapid Response team to help workers facing layoffs.

Ideas

• Acknowledge openly that people are gone and that it’s hard
• Say what you know, what you don’t, and when you’ll know more
• Give people a chance to ask questions

Agree with your own leaders what can stop, slow down or wait. Heavy workloads and unclear roles are major risks to mental health at work.

Talk to a peer manager, mentor or your EAP. You can’t care for a team well if you are running on empty.

Coworkers who stayed are often feeling the same mix of things. A quiet coffee or walk together, without gossip, can help everyone feel less alone.

In the U.S., most private-sector workers have the right to act together with coworkers to improve working conditions, with or without a union. A union rep can raise workload concerns on behalf of a group.

Spending time with people outside work reminds you that your worth isn’t tied to your job title or whether you made the cut.