The Layoff Club

Resources that actually help.

Every link here is free to use, real, and checked by a human. No affiliate deals, no lead generation funnels, no seminar that turns out to be a timeshare pitch for your career.

Your first 48 hours

The order of operations matters more than you'd think. These four things come before updating LinkedIn, before telling your extended family, before everything.

  • File for unemployment

    Benefits start when you file, not when you got cut. Every day you wait is money gone. Our walkthrough of the whole miserable process.

  • Read the severance agreement first

    That agreement was written to protect them. Find out how long you have to review it, in writing, and use every day of it.

  • Run your numbers

    Five minutes with our calculator tells you how many months of runway you actually have. Panic is worse when it's vague.

  • Make the health insurance call

    You get 60 days to decide on COBRA, and it's rarely the right answer. Read this before you panic-pay $700 a month.

Unemployment benefits

Every state runs its own system, sets its own numbers, and maintains its own barely functional website. Start with your state.

Start here

Unemployment Benefits by State

Your state's numbers, filing site, and rules. Find yours and skip the guesswork.

Find your state →
  • CareerOneStop benefits finder

    The federal directory of every state's filing site. Useful when you're not sure which agency owns your claim.

  • How to survive filing

    What to expect from the process, what documents to gather, and how to handle the dreaded pending status.

Health insurance

Losing job coverage hurts, but it also opens a special enrollment window. You have options beyond the eye-watering COBRA quote.

  • HealthCare.gov

    Losing coverage gives you 60 days to enroll in an ACA plan, subsidies included. Your new lower income probably qualifies you for more help than you'd guess.

  • KFF subsidy calculator

    Plug in your new income and see what a marketplace plan really costs after subsidies. Often a fraction of COBRA.

  • Medicaid

    If your income dropped hard, you may qualify for free or near-free coverage. No enrollment window, apply any time.

  • COBRA rules from the DOL

    The official rules for keeping your old plan, if you can stomach the price. Worth reading before you decide anything.

  • GoodRx

    Prescription coupons that beat insurance prices often enough to be mildly infuriating. No account needed.

Keeping the lights on

You paid into these programs for years. Using them now is the entire point. Nobody hands out medals for draining your 401(k) instead.

  • 211

    Dial 211 or search online. One front door for local rent help, utility assistance, food programs, and crisis support.

  • Findhelp

    Search thousands of local assistance programs by zip code. Surprisingly well built for this corner of the internet.

  • SNAP eligibility

    Food assistance is a program, not charity. Check the income limits, they're higher than most people assume.

  • Feeding America food bank finder

    Find your local food bank. They don't ask for a resume.

  • Federal student loan relief

    Federal loans can pause while you're unemployed. Deferment beats default every single time.

  • NFCC credit counseling

    Nonprofit credit counselors who will help you triage debt without upselling you into a consolidation scam.

Your head

A layoff scrambles your identity, not just your income. Taking that seriously is a survival skill, not an indulgence.

  • 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline

    Call or text 988 if it gets dark in there. Free, 24/7, staffed by humans who won't flinch.

  • NAMI HelpLine

    Real people who know the mental health system and where the free and low-cost options hide.

  • Open Path Collective

    Flat-rate therapy sessions priced for people between paychecks. No insurance required.

  • r/layoffs

    Thousands of people in the same boat, comparing notes in real time. Equal parts support group and group vent.

  • What layoffs do to your head

    Our honest take on the psychological hit, and what actually helps.

This category of the internet is infested with lead generation dressed up as help. These are the ones that earn their spot.

  • CareerOneStop training finder

    Federal WIOA money can pay for retraining and certifications. Actual dollars, not a motivational poster.

  • American Job Centers

    Free in-person help with resumes, applications, and accessing that retraining money. Criminally underused.

  • Layoffs.fyi

    Tracks tech layoffs in real time. Useful for knowing which companies to skip and which industries are bleeding.

  • Networking without the ick

    You're not begging for favors, you're gathering intelligence. Scripts included.

  • The LinkedIn question

    When to update it, when to wait, and whether that green banner helps or hurts.

  • Job hunting after 50

    Age discrimination is real and measurable. So are the tactics that work around it.

Know your rights

Companies count on you not knowing this stuff. Twenty minutes of reading can be worth real money.

  • WARN Act

    Mass layoffs at bigger companies usually require 60 days of notice, or 60 days of pay. The DOL explains who's covered.

  • EEOC on age discrimination

    Over 40 and noticing a pattern in who got cut? That's a protected class, and the EEOC takes reports.

  • Find an employment lawyer

    NELA's directory of employment attorneys. A one-hour severance review can pay for itself many times over.

  • Severance red flags

    The clauses to watch for and the leverage you didn't know you had.

Laid off on a visa

If you're on an H-1B or similar, a layoff starts a 60 day clock, and the stakes are a different animal entirely. Start here.

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