I heard a new phrase this last week. Layoff remorse. It's not that these people were laid off. Instead it's the opposite situation. Their friends and coworkers have been laid off.
At first I thought how selfish to be thinking of themselves during this hard time. Then I realized it's true. Our company has now laid off 4600 employees in three rounds. 33% alone from our department. Each time the ones who didn't receive a notice react first with relief, then embarrassment.
The first round was directly after Thanksgiving. They went out the door on the same day as the next round is handed notices. . Then the last day of January another round of lay of notices are handed out. They will go out the door the end of next month. Finally, Thursday the 'last' round was notified. They will go out the end of April.
My question to you is how to cope as a survivor? I've signed up to work at the local food bank. I'm working with management to donate a plot of land for a community garden to give to laid off workers. This brings up the question of who receives the product from the garden.
This doesn't answer the guilt feeling of being left with a job when so many don't. You see many articles on how to survive after you've lost a job. How do you survive when you don't?