Outplacement For Blue-Collars

At the time of transformational changes in companies – restructuring, factory closures and reorganizations – the topic of mass staff reduction remains relevant.

Our insight is about the most vulnerable category of personnel – workers or blue-collars.

According to our practice, such employees are among the most helpless applicants in the labor market for the following reasons:

• “I’ve been working on the same factory for my whole life”

• “I don’t know how to do anything else”

• “I don’t know anything but this equipment”

• “What to do next?”

• “I am an inactive internet user”

• “I don’t even have an email”

It is very important to consider in outplacement programs all the above reasons for anxiety of these employees, to make the process of dismissal from the company as comfortable as possible for them.

Our long-term experience in working with personnel of blue-collar jobs shows that it is easier for them to be open, express their position, say out concerns in the group formats of outplacement programs as opposed to specialists and managers who prefer individual contact with a consultant.

The group program includes trainings and seminars on various topics: how to make a CV, how to register on job boards and get an e-mail address. The blue-collars are comfortable to be around each other, they feel more relaxed and confident seeing that they’re not alone in this, they have a choice and will make it through.

They usually come to meetings in small groups of 3-5 people and in their interaction with a consultant they communicate in the first person plural, saying: “that’s how we…” and “we want…”

Individual career advising of Outplacement participants can only be discussed after the group events: they no longer feel that distant, begin to ask questions about the labor market and CVs, about their further actions as an applicant – the level of trust increases. The attitude itself changes from depressed and negative to more responsive, open and positive.

During the period of support for this category of personnel it is very important to understand that you are not only a professional for them, but also become a “friend”, who can humanly listen and hear.