How to protect yourself against redundancy

Redundancy is a shocking experience that many people have to face at one point or another. It is worrying to report, therefore, that Google searches for ‘redundancy’ in Wales are on the rise, as more and more people seek to prevent themselves from being fired.

This is understandable because whether you have been let go due to corporate downsizing or underperformance, no one likes losing their job.

In fact, redundancy can best be compared to a professional breakup, when many emotions (such as feelings of rejection, helplessness and even anger) are combined with rational concerns such as finding a replacement job, working out why it happened and how it affects other aspects of your life.

The reason why sudden redundancy can hit home so hard is that it disrupts your entire life. You are left with no routine, no income, no sense of gratification and even troubled relationships with your spouse or family, who might not understand the situation fully.

Therefore, it is vital that you find ways to protect yourself against the risk of redundancy. During times of economic uncertainty, companies are battening down the hatches and finding extreme cost-cutting measures to keep them afloat.

Therefore, you need to make the case for your employment so persuasive that they have no choice but to keep your job secure:

People are increasingly conscious of redundancy 

This is understandable for several reasons. The first is that, during the tough financial times that the Western world is currently experiencing, many businesses are having to make brutal financial decisions to stay afloat and keep trading profitably.

This usually involves measures such as redundancy, which is a worry if you feel that you are in a vulnerable position.

What’s more, households are currently experiencing a skyrocketing cost of living, with everything from energy to fuel, food to rent going through the roof. This rapid rise in inflation means that suffering redundancy now would make it that much harder to live comfortably.

There are a number of insurance products on the market such as income protection that could help protect you and your family if you are unfortunate enough to go through a significant loss of income from a sustained period. However according to the Future Proof insurance website, this type of cover does not usually include redundancy cover, so it’s best to read the small print.

Strive to make yourself irreplaceable

The best way to protect yourself against redundancy is to make yourself irreplaceable. If you’re wondering how to do this in a role that requires no specialised skill, then you should think outside the box.

Develop other attributes which will be of great value to your employer. Skills such as public speaking, people skills, additional knowledge that allows you to perform other tasks within the business and close relationships with customers are all difficult to replace, so strive to always improve your abilities.

Aim to move up the ladder

Another great approach to combat potential redundancy is to move up the rungs within a business. The higher you reach and the more responsibility you acquire, the less replaceable you will be. Inc., for example, has eight tips on how to move up the ladder of your company.

If you perform so highly that you cannot be ignored, you will stand less of a chance of being fired.