Most people who are laid off were productive members of their companies. The companies either no longer had work for them to do, or pretended not to, and then sent the work to India or China, or hired a new grad to do the same work (although probably not as well).
On one of my recent jobs, I was replaced by THREE H1-B's...
"Most people who are laid off were productive members of their companies. The companies either no longer had work for them to do, or pretended not to, and then sent the work to India or China, or hired a new grad to do the same work (although probably not as well)."
Well said!
Most people don't realize how prevalent this is.
Motorola laid off 59,000 tech workers in 2002, and moved their plants to China.
They promised a resonable severance package IF you signed an agreement not to sue for age discrimination.
Beancounters do not have a good stick with which to measure the value of experience and competence in the tech world.
Therefore, what looks the cheapest MUST BE the cheapest!
But, alas, you do get what you pay for.
Then I should rephase it. If I am laid off, it will not be because of something I did or did not do.
I work work "at will", which means I could become unemployed at any time.
Having clarified that point, it just re-enforces the main point(s).
Due to no fault of my own, I could be unemployed. It is up to me to be prepared for that event.