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Comment by kvz | Hacker News Reader

> “those affected have already been notified via personal and work email”

Even for remote staff, there are many more human ways of informing someone they are out of a job than shooting an email. Am I the only one who feels that way? Is it actually better to get an email an process the blow in async? Genuinely curious as I didn’t see this comment yet.

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I'd prefer an email. I'd want to think about it, try and calm down etc before talking to anyone at work about it. There is no value in my manager or HR getting my hot take (or just watching me get upset) by firing me one-on-one, and firing in a webinar-style zoom call seems even more impersonal (remember that guy). So yeah, email seems a good way, or the least shitty imo.

I don't think there are good ways to inform people they are laid off. Personally, I prefer to receive an email than being told in person. At least I can keep my emotions for myself. The best thing that the company can do is to give a good severance package.

Right. Hitting someone with that out of nowhere and the inevitable "I have two sentences to save my job" response is awful. I would never want to be terminated in person.

Yes but the idea is you need to fire a lot of people at once and a consequence of that is that their access needs to be cut off immediately. So you cut access, remove access to everyone that’s being fired, and then deal with each individual over the following weeks.

I think it is brutal and terrible.

I’m at Google and had reports get laid off. I don’t just have their personal contact information or whatever and neither does my team. No opportunity to easily say goodbye or thank them for their hard work or offer references or whatever. Just poof. A name on a dashboard.

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