How to deal with job cuts: Huge layoffs at big tech companies in recent months have put a spotlight on mass firings and just how cruelly they can be dealt out. Nearly 130k tech employees at some 814 companies have lost their jobs this year, with companies like Meta, Amazon, and most notoriously, Twitter, resorting to gutting their staff. More than half of Twitter’s staff have been fired since Elon Musk took the helm of the company — many of whom were notified by discovering they had been locked out of their company email and slack accounts, in a frankly brutal example of how not to treat employees.

This spells trouble in the world of tech where workers often hold on to the fact that sacrifices they make for their employers now will reap dividends at a later date. The recent spate of firings has shaken that supposedly long-standing belief, according to the Financial Times.

Layoffs can hurt companies more than their execs think: Since the 1970s, more and more companies have restored to layoffs in times of crisis to stay afloat, but some studies suggest that layoffs might not be the best course to pursue over the long term. A 2012 University of Texas at Arlington study found that “layoffs had a neutral to negative effect on stock prices in the days following their announcement.” Separate studies from Auburn University, Baylor University, and the University of Tennessee have also found that companies who go the mass firing route are twice as likely to end up filing for bankruptcy than companies who don’t.

One big negative consequence of widespread layoffs is the damage to morale among those who remain at the company. Firing 1% of a company’s workforce in a year has been found to trigger a 31% increase in quitting among remaining employees the following year, according to University of Wisconsin–Madison and University of South Carolina researchers. This is partially because a sense of anxiety starts to build among those who witnessed the firing take place and likely also because fewer people have to cover the same amount of work.

What are the alternatives to layoffs for struggling businesses? If something’s not working, it could be that employees are in redundant roles, rather than that there are too many people working at the company. Internally retraining and moving staff to new roles is an option for big firms. If that doesn’t work, companies can opt for furloughs instead of layoffs when times are really tough — when it’s time to power back up, rehiring will be much easier than for firms who made brutal cuts.

When all other options are exhausted: If a company is forced to make layoffs to stay afloat, execs should proceed with caution — and remember that there’s no need to burn bridges. A former employee could be a future client, business partner, or even come back to the company in a new role. “You want to have that alumni network in good shape,” one associate director of business training programs at Harvard University tells CNBC.

Among the ways to make layoffs as painless as possible, according to business experts who spoke to CNBC:

• Communicate clearly: Explain to employees in plain language exactly why this is happening and what other steps were taken before the decision was made.
• Lead from the front: Don’t hide behind “HR” — employees need to hear the news from those at the top of leadership, preferably in a one-on-one, in-person conversation.
• Show compassion: Getting laid off is one of the most difficult experiences a person can go through. Empathy is important.
• Offer support for next steps: Helping a recently laid off employee find another job — through resume and cover letter advice or a company’s professional network — might be the single most effective thing to do for someone who has been let go.

Getting laid off is extremely tough. Is there anything employees can do to prepare? If they’re getting the sense that something is amiss and their company could be gearing up to make layoffs, it’s a good time for employees to do an internal audit of their personal finances. If they can, workers should build a savings buffer that can sustain them for three to six months, Christopher Kayes, management chair at the George Washington University School of Business, tells the Washington Post. It’s also a good idea to check their contracts and see what they’re entitled to in terms of notice and severance pay. And employees should keep their resumes, LinkedIn profiles, and professional network current in case they need to make a move.

The worst has happened. What now? The sense of loss and upheaval that comes from losing a job is similar to the grieving process when you lose a loved one, one 2019 study in the journal Frontiers found. It can be necessary to take some time to “mourn” a former role. At some point, though, laid-off employees will have to get back on the horse — and back on the job market. Keeping friendly connections with a former employer wherever possible, continuing to build a professional network, and refusing to let the experience knock your confidence are all good steps to take. “It might be an opportunity versus a crisis,” one recruiter tells the WP.