How should you deal with soft layoffs in the workplace?

How should you deal with soft layoffs in the workplace?

Leng Mo

It’s the end of the year. While people in the workplace are restless, they also encounter various problems. . Can I change jobs next year? What should companies do if they implement "soft layoffs"? On New Year's Day, these three questions, whether companies can freely arrange holidays, are also the questions most frequently asked by readers.

Question 1: Depending on the situation next year, can I still change jobs?

The workplace is a barometer of the economic situation. Many working professionals are well aware of the poor performance in the workplace this year. But at the end of the year, I feel that the year-end bonus is unknown, and the salary increase is far away, and it is inevitable to think of changing jobs. Based on this, many working people are particularly concerned about the economic situation next year. Can they jump? Liu Xingyang, a human resources expert at China Talent Network, said that in fact, the 1-2 months after the Spring Festival is often the peak season for job-hopping, but it is often at this time that employees make the decision to change jobs. Therefore, faced with the economic situation, The challenges can only be spoken through data for reference by people in the workplace.

Before changing jobs, you must be aware of the direction of industrial structural adjustment

Liu Xingyang analyzed that from a macro situation perspective, the impact of the economic field will further promote changes in domestic demand for talents. Looking only at the macro talent demand structure, from 2002 to 2011, the proportion of employment in my country's primary, secondary and tertiary industries adjusted from 50.0:21.4:28.6 to 34.8:29.5:35.7, and the proportion of employment in the primary industry dropped by 15.2 percentage points. , the secondary and tertiary industries increased by 8.1 and 7.1 percentage points respectively. As this trend continues to advance in 2013, changes in the macro demand structure will be concretely reflected in changes in micro enterprise personnel.

? ? Industry type affects the frequency of employee transfer and entry.

Different industry characteristics also drive different trends in talent flow between industries. The "10th China's Best Employers Report" released this year by China Talent Network made an in-depth and detailed analysis of talent mobility in 16 major industries. Using job seekers' career change and industry entry status when changing jobs as two classification indicators, the 16 major industries are divided into four categories: stable industries, unstable industries, pressure industries and attractive industries. Among them, stable industries are industries with a low outflow rate of job seekers and a low inflow rate. Unstable industries are industries with a relatively high outflow and inflow ratio of job seekers. Stressed industries are industries with a high outflow rate of job seekers but a low inflow rate. Attracting industries are industries with a low outflow rate and a high inflow rate of job seekers.

Although the financial industry and the Internet industry are favored by many job seekers, these two industries, along with real estate and construction, are both stressful industries. Public administration/social security/social organizations, retail/department stores, education/technology/culture/sports and other industries are attractive industries. Stable industries include consumer goods, medicine/health, transportation/transportation/logistics industries. The manufacturing/electrical appliances, communications/communications, and computer industries are unstable industries.

? ? The three major industries are expected to still be active in job hopping next year

Based on the latest employment index in Mainland China released by China Talent Network, which timely reflects the demand for talents in Mainland China, we can list those that are particularly in need in 2013 Pay attention to several industries that deal with employee job-hopping.

1. Financial industry: The financial industry itself is a stressful industry, and employees are more likely to change jobs. According to the Mainland China Employment Index (CEI) of China Talent Network, the financial industry has maintained a good number of talents in 2012. Demand is strong. The continuation of this trend will further stimulate the job-hopping craze in 2013.

2. IT industry: The IT industry has a large demand for talents, and it is a pressure industry. Compared with industries such as accommodation, catering, and retail where the demand for talents is lower than the historical average, the number of talents in the IT industry Demand remains relatively stable. Among them, subdivided areas, such as the software industry, are developing relatively fast, which will naturally promote the fierce competition for talents.

3. Real estate: Real estate is also a pressure industry. The real estate CEI in October 2012 was 110, higher than 97 in the same period last year. The demand for talents has increased significantly. If the market moves in an optimistic direction in 2013, the competition for talent in the real estate industry will inevitably intensify.

? ? Problem 2: What should companies do if they have “soft layoffs” at the end of the year?

With economic growth slowing down, layoffs are nothing new. At the end of the year, due to poor performance, some companies initiated the idea of ??"soft layoffs" and tried their best to force employees to resign voluntarily without spending a penny in compensation.

See through these commonly used "soft layoffs" methods

"Soft layoffs" methods generally appear in some small and medium-sized enterprises. There are four commonly used soft layoffs methods.

1. The boss creates a tense atmosphere, often talks about crises, and formulates a more stringent evaluation system. Employees are under great mental pressure. Some people cannot bear it and may withdraw from the battlefield early.

2. Change positions and locations, such as from the business department to the sales department. If you are used to sitting in an office, how can you afford to rush around in sales work? If there is no performance, then you have to pack up and leave. For example, the work location is transferred from the city to the suburbs. 3. Financial investigation. Employees must not be careless about financial reimbursement. If there is any discrepancy, they may be labeled as dishonest. If their character is questionable, it will be difficult for them to gain a foothold in the company. 4. Forced to take unpaid leave. Since the company does not have much business, the boss will mobilize everyone to go home and take unpaid leave, and then notify them when there is work. Force employees to resign on their own initiative.

? ? Strive to become the person the boss wants to retain

Liu Xingyang said that in order to become the person the boss wants to retain, you must maintain your core competitiveness.

Not only must you have performance, but you must also be able to show off your performance

Performance is an important criterion for the boss to judge whether you are worth keeping. Producing impressive performance or continuous rapid growth will become an important bargaining chip for the boss to determine to train you as a core employee. An additional reminder here is that if you have performance, you must also be able to show off your performance. Showing performance is not simply about bragging about oneself. What is needed is systematic sorting, focused focus, and appropriate performance. Especially at the end of the year, you must learn to present your core performance to your leadership colleagues in an intuitive way. Pay attention to the core performance, do not list everything in detail.

? ? During the critical period for promotion and salary increase, don’t ruin yourself for temporary gains and losses

The more outstanding a person is, the more attention you have to the emotional impact you have on other people in the company. ; Because you are noticeable, your emotions will be more infectious and influential. Once you convey negative emotions, it will affect many team members. Obviously, no matter how great an individual's performance is, it cannot be greater than that of the team. Individuals should not feel too angry about temporary gains and losses.

Problem 3: The New Year’s Day holiday arrangements are so fragmented, can companies be flexible?

On December 8, 2012, the "Notice of the General Office of the State Council on Arrangements for Certain Holidays in 2013" was released, which attracted divergent opinions from all walks of life. After this year's New Year's Day holiday arrangements were released, many people couldn't help but wonder why the holiday arrangements were so fragmented. Therefore, many companies have adjusted their holiday schedules out of work considerations. Is this legal for businesses to do? We invited three young scholars from the Labor and Social Security Research Young Scholars Committee of the Shanghai Labor and Social Security Society to analyze this.

Fragmented vacations, different intentions

Dr. Zhang Lufa, deputy director of the Department of Public Economics and Social Policy, School of International and Public Affairs, Shanghai Jiao Tong University

Why are the holidays arranged this way? From a policy perspective, the evolution of holiday policies in recent years has experienced a shift from focusing primarily on economic benefits to comprehensively focusing on social benefits. The concept of Golden Week was proposed in 1999. During the first National Day Golden Week that year, 28 million people traveled across the country, with tourism revenue of 14.1 billion yuan. In the 2007 National Day Golden Week, my country received 146 million tourists. , tourism revenue increased to 64.2 billion yuan. This shows that long holiday arrangements are indeed very helpful in promoting economic growth. However, while stimulating the economy, "overload" of transportation, scenic spots, services and even individuals are also coming one after another. If these social costs are taken into account, the social benefits brought by the long vacation may be far lower than the economic benefits.

In recent years, with the improvement of high-speed rail, expressway and other transportation, previous multi-day tours can be turned into several-day tours or even weekend tours. In this way, a 3-day trip that connects legal holidays and weekends The long holiday arrangement can not only maintain the stimulation of consumption but also avoid the shortcomings of the Golden Week, and the economic benefits and social benefits can be better matched. Therefore, the holiday schedule for statutory holidays in 2013 seems to be fragmented, and this aspect should also be considered.

Of course, as there are many possible combinations of how to specifically arrange statutory holidays, it is recommended that more public opinions be sought in the future as to which combination to choose.

? ? Companies look forward to flexible and diverse holiday arrangements

Dr. Li Xudan, Associate Professor, Department of Human Resources Management, Shanghai Normal University, Director of the Human Resources Assessment Center

Statutory holidays are important for companies An integral part of employee statutory benefits, it can also be a productive management tool for businesses. However, the arrangement of public holidays in 2013 really made some companies happy and some sad. It should be said that the government functional departments have taken great pains to arrange the seven medium- and long-term holidays, but it seems that this unified arrangement cannot satisfy all aspects of society. expectations.

From the perspective of employees, although this arrangement provides more opportunities for concentrated rest and leisure, it also increases the work pace and pressure before and after the holidays. From an enterprise's perspective, business management and operations require a stable environment. The seven medium- and long-term holidays can easily interrupt the normal business operation process, especially for some industries and enterprises that are in line with international standards. Therefore, the impact of each long holiday arrangement on the company is actually one to two weeks. In total, the impact on the company accounts for almost one-fifth of the entire year.

At present, some companies provide employees with flexible paid leave systems, which can effectively avoid the disadvantages caused by centralized leave methods and truly provide employees with personalized benefits. Therefore, it is possible to consider whether the state can delegate unified holiday arrangements to enterprises, and on the basis of ensuring employees' statutory holiday rest, allow enterprises to provide flexible paid holiday plans around statutory holidays based on their own business and management status, and also respect employees Independent choice plays a positive role in ensuring normal business activities and enhancing employee happiness.

Arrange in accordance with the law and execute flexibly

Lawyer Lu Yin, Chief Partner of Shanghai Blue and White Law Firm

No matter whether the State Council’s holiday arrangements are comfortable or not, it will or will It affects our work and life to a greater or lesser extent. If this impact is not handled properly, it will evolve into conflicts between workers and employers. Two dispute situations may occur in real life. One is that the enterprise fails to implement holidays in accordance with the holiday arrangements of the State Council, but the workers request to arrange the holidays in accordance with the notice of the State Council; the other is that the enterprise implements holidays in accordance with the holiday arrangements of the State Council, but the employees refuse. Follow the employer's arrangements.

Because the disputes all involve holiday arrangements notified by the State Council, they also involve the validity of the above-mentioned notifications from the State Council. From a legal perspective, the "Notice of the General Office of the State Council on Arrangements for Certain Holidays in 2013" is not a law, regulation or rule, but is only a "normative document" formed by the State Council in the process of exercising its administrative powers. Therefore, the document itself does not have The force of law. On the other hand, judging from the wording, this "normative document" is a notice of holiday arrangements for the people's governments of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government, ministries and commissions of the State Council, and agencies directly under the Central Government, rather than a unified holiday arrangement for all sectors of society.

In any case, when an enterprise arranges holidays, it needs to comply with the labor law's restrictions on working hours and wages. For example, if the employee is scheduled to work on a rest day, compensatory leave should be arranged; if the employee is scheduled to work on a national holiday, a salary of no less than 300% of the salary should be paid. Therefore, enterprises can reasonably and legally arrange rest on relevant holidays based on the notice of the State Council and according to the characteristics of their own production and operations, instead of completely following the notice.

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