New skills to survive in employment
The job search at the present time is becoming increasingly difficult for people worldwide and they are not necessarily situations created by the companies themselves.
These, to survive will have to adapt to the new conditions and challenges of the environment and by the way it will be necessary for people, and keep more updated, they will have to opt for a greater learning that allows them to develop new personal and professional skills compatible with the greater demands of the new job profiles, being more employable to stay on course in a job.
The current environment and companies
The world situation is changing significantly due to the effects of economic globalization, technological innovation and adaptation to this modern world; the survival of organizations, constitutes today a strategic imperative of life, in which they must commit themselves firmly, to face an increasingly competitive and changing environment and with increasingly demanding and discriminating clients; You will have to optimize the skills of your staff as a fundamental strategy, give greater value to the quality of your products and greater added value to the services / products and of course encourage and maintain your position in the market and the loyalty of both external and external customers. internal..
The causes that originated this abrupt and traumatic change are the economic recessions of the 80-90s, which are still worsening today, together with the long deterioration in the global competitiveness of companies, causing many firms to innovate technology, they were overloaded with staff, feeling slow and inefficient, with capacity to respond to the market.
Downsizing and the survival of companies
In order to survive and compete in this market and overcome the growing reduction in their profit margins, companies have been forced to resort to many saving strategies, opting for mergers, strategic alliances, closures, reductions, restructurings, machinery innovation and team, outsourcing (Outsourcing of services), reconfiguration of jobs, change in job profiles, elimination of excessive hierarchical levels and finally as an alternative to implement the application of downsizing (Reduction of the structure and personnel costs), which it will inevitably lead to downsizing.
It is inevitable then that job losses may increase; Perhaps we know little about what it means to lose your job, even though it is a situation that, as we refer, is very common in all parts of the world, which even serves as a background argument for some television series.
But what effects do people in this situation face? People who lose their jobs have disorders in the form of anxiety, strong damage to self-esteem, feelings of guilt, deterioration of self-concept, psychosomatic illnesses, irritability, hypertension, tension, depression, abandonment and that can cause more severe pathologies, such as alcoholism or other addiction to psychoactive substances.
In general, it affects the deterioration of mental and physical health, loss of well-being and dissatisfaction with one's life. References have been made to very critical extreme reactions to dismissal, such as aggression (Burning the workplace), others of an intra-punitive nature (Suicide).
What effects does the dismissal have on the family context?
At the family level, if it is the dismissal of the head of the family, family relationships may gradually become tense, cold or distant, friction and arguments increase, friction, lack of tolerance, change of roles, eventually force the wife, if she is currently working, to face the support for her family herself or to look for a job, if she does not have one, provided she has the age and qualification that is currently required in all jobs; if the husband loses his job, he will be forced to take care of the housework to which he may never have been used.
The tense climate generated in the family will possibly affect the performance and behavior of school-age children. Parents will be forced to change their private college or university in which they were to a national entity
The situation can become more acute, when the fired head of the household tries to find another job and if he is over 35 or 40 years of age, it will not be easy for him to get a job soon and worse, if he does not have the required professional and technical skills currently, having to settle for venturing into minor activities or trades in which he was never used either.
What about executives and managers who lose their jobs?
In the case of the dismissal of senior executives, among other aspects, people think that those who leave these positions or positions of power do so with so much money and contacts that they should not have problems to continue their professional life.
The simple truth is that the more position and power lost, it is even more difficult to adapt to new situations and logically to live without power and employment.
Many executives find it difficult to position themselves and rethink their new identity, to return to the level and face unanswered phone calls, invitations and greetings that do not arrive, doors that do not open as before; and realize that you have fewer friends than you thought.
It is important then to remember while having power and position, one must avoid the isolation and vanity that this can bring; We are used to listening only to those who tell you what you want to hear or who always tell you to be your faithful collaborators.
Loneliness in these positions can disconnect us from the reality of their work, the organization and our own life; worse still to become inflexible victims of their own success.
Many times, the "lack of time" leads them not to use real time in their family, to dedicate themselves to leading roles and social gatherings; at the same time forgetting old friends; Each call that we have not returned to an unattended friend will be charged later and with interest.
Keeping the job is the responsibility of the worker himself
The real situation that many workers who lose their jobs go through is because they think they are "protected" by a "Traditional non-existent job stability" or by having contacts or affinity with senior executives of the company; no efforts to update and train permanently, or not dedicate themselves to optimizing their professional, personal and work skills, nor their personal marketing that translates into assertive behavior with favorable interpersonal relationships at all levels, projecting trust, loyalty and commitment within their team work and in front of their superiors, a sine qua non condition to stay in employment.
Ethical commitment of the company to those laid off
The outplacement programs (OPC), is an ethical strategy and a management tool applicable after the Downsizing, with great psychological emphasis to support staff that is constantly, contributing to that the trauma of the dismissal is perceived by the worker, not a fatal situation with no solution, but rather as a new challenge to face in finding a new job or occupation.
Organizations should consider this process as a real response to their moral concerns, making a mea culpa, assuming a moral commitment and trying to make the "Goodbye with less pain", so that the impact of the dismissal is not traumatic. both, for those workers who dissociate themselves, as well as for those who will continue in the organization (survivors syndrome), avoiding affecting the work environment as little as possible, which surely in these conditions will be fraught with tensions, uncertainties and fears; thus, it must also maintain the positive image of the company in front of its clients, suppliers, financial entities and in general the public opinion.
The outplacement programs (OPC), bring together a series of support strategies, psychological and technical guidance, for those people subject to job separation.
The ouplacement (OPC), "It is a process of advice, support, guidance and training directed to the person, to graduate or be transferred to the search for a new job or activity similar in level or conditions to those of their previous occupation in the as little time as possible ”.
The contribution of psychology
The contribution of psychology to these work transition processes is significantly important, especially in the initial stages of the process, both in the initial psychological support, as well as in the psychometric evaluations of abilities, occupational orientation, psychological advice and search for the job market.
The emphasis of this task is also directed to those people who are about to retire either naturally or early, providing them with training; allowing them to establish a strategy to plan their extra-work life plan and of course to prepare to live with a better quality of life, in which undoubtedly the family nucleus plays an important role, which must be prepared, which should be without extreme protectionism or with indifference.
What about the quality of life of retirees?
People, whose parents have retired, it is usual that they assume extremely protectionist attitudes, they prevent the retiree from going to the store alone, because he could be run over by a car, they prevent him from going to water the garden of the house because fear of who could catch a cold, speak in a low voice about the problems that exist at home or at work, for fear that the retiree will listen and suddenly cause problems with blood pressure, heart or other ailments.
Not sharing things with them and extreme protectionism do not do them any good, the retiree feels marginalized, depressed and what is worse, perhaps even useless for everything, a burden on the family, their mental faculties can feel them weak etc. In short, the attitudes of the relatives do nothing more than produce a slow death for him.
On the contrary, we must support them in the activities they would like to do, such as gardening, carpentry, drawing, etc., suddenly write a book about their experiences, start a business, continue working as an advisor to the company in which they worked or others, he is a person with so much experience that we could take advantage of his wisdom, his advice, make him join our projects and family activities, have a relationship with his old friends, make the trip that they always wanted to do and that they did not they did it for work reasons.
These people deserve a dignified life and the best way to achieve it is to make them feel useful to all who live with them.
In the 1940s, American psychologists called it Retirement Council, the activity by which psychological counseling and guidance were provided to people about to retire so that they could plan their life outside of work in a dignified way.
