There is never a good time to be made redundant, and this will undoubtedly be a period of time of stress and uncertainty for you and your family. Try to remain positive however, because with the right guidance you can soon get back on track.
The first step is to draw up a budget so you get absolute clarity about what you have coming in and what commitments you have going out. This will help you take stock of your finances.
There are a number of steps that your employer will have to take in making you redundant, and there's information that you'll want to know.
As a first point of call, speak to your manager and explore whether there are any other opportunities in the company.
If there aren't, you will then need to find out what your entitlements are. For instance, how much redundancy pay will you get and when exactly would this be paid into your bank account. You will need to understand what happens with your pension, and also what notice period you're on. It is also worth exploring with your employer whether they are able and willing to let you have time off to attend interviews, or indeed, whether they will help you in any retraining that you'll want to do.
It's going to be very important however, to make sure you get the best possible reference from your employer, as this is a key step in getting another job.
Now that you've got a greater understanding of your finances, there are a number of things you can do to put them in order.
First of all, find out if you're entitled to any state benefits or tax credits, as this could increase your income. Whilst it may not seem like a lot, every little will help.
Take another look at your budget plan to see whether you can prioritise your commitments. At a time when you've got less coming in, you'll undoubtedly want to look very hard at everything going out and make savings where you can.
If, at the end of the day you are really struggling to meet your commitments and you want some guidance around debt management, there are experts who can help, such as the Citizens Advice Bureau and the Consumer Credit Counselling Service. Remember, they are here to help you, so please don't be afraid to get in touch with them.
Your mortgage will be very important to you, as the last thing you want to do is to put your home at risk.
If you want to find out information about any of these schemes, you can go to the Direct Government website or alternatively, speak to the Citizens Advice Bureau. You could also find this information is available on your local council website.
It is a good idea to look at trade magazines as well as the local and national press. There are also a great number of websites out there which will help you search for a job by specific skills or in a specific sector.
And the recruitment agencies are well worth talking to because they're long-established in the recruitment market and they can help you in a whole host of ways.
And please don't rule out temporary work as these can often lead to future opportunities.
What measures can I take for the future?
The key things to remember when planning ahead are: * Keep a budget. * Put some money aside for a rainy day. * Look for the right insurance policy for you.
Hopefully, these will just be precautions, but you'll be thankful that you've prepared should the worst happen.
For more information please visit - http://www.lloydstsb.com/advice_and_guidance/advice_and_guidance.asp
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Developing Your Budget - Lloyds TSB Advice and Guidanceby LloydsTSB1,091 views
Redundancy advice from a bailed out bank, Is this serious?
clingon2k 4 months ago