Your company decided to outsource payroll, so you’re out. Maybe they got new management to clean the house. Perhaps the company is transitioning to an electric fleet and you no longer have the skills to work on the new vehicles. Whatever the circumstances, getting fired is no fun. Picking up the pieces and looking for a new job can be difficult.
Work is often part of our identity. Getting fired hurts. Take a day or two after the breakup to grieve. Stomp around. scream at the world! Try to manage the anger so you can focus your energy on moving forward.
Next, apply for unemployment insurance benefits. The best and quickest way to apply for a job is online using a computer or laptop. (You cannot use a mobile phone or tablet to file.) Go to esd.wa.gov/unemployment to learn how. You can also call 1-800-318-6022; However, depending on the time of year, you may have to wait in line for a while. Call Monday through Friday between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.
Remember that unemployment benefits are designed to provide you with a temporary income if you lose your job through no fault of your own. The benefits replace only part of your lost income – around 60%, regardless of financial need. Benefits last no longer than six months and there are no extensions. (All of these additional benefits offered in the early months of the COVID pandemic ended in 2021.)
If you are eligible for unemployment, you must look for a job three times a week, submit weekly applications, and keep a written record of your job searches.
If you’ve lost your job as a result of the scenarios outlined above – layoff, reorganization, skills no longer in demand, closure/sale of a business, or other as defined by the US Department of Labor – there is a glimmer of hope. You could be considered a ‘freelance worker’.
Thanks to the state’s Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), there are resources to help “displaced workers” get back to work as quickly as possible. Best of all, WIOA programs offer free help to qualified individuals!
The help ranges from assistance in finding a job to retraining for a new profession. At the very least, you can meet with a professional career counselor for free to discuss your options. The consultant will help you create a better resume, apply for jobs online and/or practice interviewing.
You may also qualify for student aid to reinvent yourself. Finally graduating from high school or graduating. Displaced workers may also be entitled to assistance with transportation costs, childcare, even tools and work clothes.
So how do you connect to the Dislocated Worker Program? It’s easy; Visit your local WorkSource center. On-site, WorkSource Yakima is located in the Ahtanum Ridge Business Park just south of Costco on Ahtanum and Long Fiber Roads. (There are also WorkSource offices across the state – check out the WorkSource locator map WorkSourceWA.com.) Let the front desk staff know you’ve been fired. WorkSource staff will either introduce you to a displaced worker career counselor or direct you to complete a short online questionnaire. Answer all questions honestly; There are several programs to help the unemployed. Take advantage of it!
Believe it or not, some people who have been helped by the Dislocated Worker Program say losing their job was the best thing that ever happened to them.
Michelle Smith is Manager of Communications and Employer Engagement at the South Central Workforce Council in Yakima.
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