Did you know that outplacement counseling is one of the best things you can introduce to your company?
Outplacement counseling is a job search service offered by companies that care about their employees. It's designed to put terminated employees on the path to finding another job they will love.
Outplacement counseling is offered to those who have been laid off or let go but need to get back into the workforce. When a company puts this in place early in employees’ employment, they will be more likely to enjoy their job, because they'll know that their employer has their back in good times and bad.
Read on to learn about 7 benefits of outplacement counseling.
1. Help Employees Find New Jobs
One of the main benefits of outplacement counseling is that it helps employees find new jobs when they're terminated. This is something that many people struggle with. Offering professional job search assistance is the best way to ensure they get back into the workforce and off your unemployment tax roll as quickly as possible.
Outplacement services help employees find new jobs in a variety of ways. They can provide resumes, create profiles for LinkedIn, and prepare employees to wow interviewers. They can also teach employees how to find jobs on the hidden job network through networking.
To illustrate how one outplacement company makes job searching easier, check out these results: Those who get outplacement from YES Career Coaching & Resume Writing Services on median/average get a new job in 8 weeks from resume finalization (compared to national unemployment, which averages 21 weeks). The average client interviews with 5 organizations and is contacted by 10 recruiters. They receive 1.5 offers and get 14% more pay at the new job.
2. Save Money on Severance
When an employee is laid off, they may receive a severance package to help them survive until they can get a new job. But since effective outplacement counseling will help them get a new job faster, they will be able to manage with a smaller severance package, saving you big on the bottom line.
Companies that offer severance typically include 1 to 4 weeks of salary for each year of service. In the United States, the average laid-off employee has 4 years of service and has been making $50K. So the severance package would be between $3,846 and $15,385, plus 38% additional in benefits, for a total average severance package of $5,307 to $21,231.
A complete, job offer-guaranteed package with YES would be $1597 before discounts, and it shortens the job search by half. So the company can offer half the severance and still come out at least $1,057 to $9,019 ahead per employee. And that employee is happy, because the stressful period of unemployment was only half as long. Multiply this by 80 laid-off employees, for example, and throw in a volume discount, and we are talking about a savings of as much as $725,952.
3. Relieve Stress with Counseling
While outplacement counseling is often used to help employees find a job, outplacement services also provide warm, friendly guidance from those who coach people to find new jobs on a daily basis. This can make employees feel they are in good hands, that their joblessness is easily resolved, and that they can take it easy.
Throughout the job search process, an outplacement coach can work with an employee to ensure that they keep a positive mindset. This will be crucial when seeking a job, because it'll encourage them to find positions they’ll be happy in and to bring a calm, confident demeanor to their networking and interviewing. Getting their “inner game” right can help employees snag a new job fast.
Having someone help them with everything they need to apply for jobs will also alleviate stress and give them the motivation to present their best self. Although they may no longer be with your company, they'll continue to have a positive outlook on you throughout the process.
4. Increase Loyalty with Employees
Increasing employee loyalty is something that every business owner wants. Unfortunately, many fail to provide for services to employees that will help them in the worst-case scenario, prompting some employees to look for a new job early, because they worry about a layoff. The simplest thing you can do is notify them (ideally at engagement) that you offer outplacement counseling, which shows that you care about their future no matter what.
When an employee sees someone get laid off and not receive outplacement counseling, they may not feel confident about their future with the company. You can mitigate this by ensuring they'll have a future even if layoffs are needed. Knowing that they'll have outplacement counseling will increase their loyalty and satisfaction.
5. Keep a Positive Image
Laying off employees without providing them with resources to move on will reflect poorly on your company just when you need to reassure investors and customers. Also, if candidates see that you don't offer outplacement counseling, they may be hesitant to work for your company. Your public image could suffer, which could prevent you from selling products and services.
Today, people are constantly talking about companies over social media. Over 3.5 billion people use social media daily, so you can't afford to have negative buzz.
If you implement outplacement counseling, people will see your company as one that cares about its employees. Whenever you do need to make layoffs or other terminations, people will be more understanding if you give those employees support to continue their careers.
6. Reduce Your Unemployment Taxes
Another one of the benefits of outplacement counseling is that it will help employees get off unemployment rolls faster, which benefits your unemployment tax rates. The average time that a person is unemployed in the United States is 21 weeks. However, with a company like YES Career Coaching & Resume Writing Services, the median time to a new job is only 8 weeks from resume finalization (which works out to about 10–11 weeks total).
7. Avoid Lawsuits
Without outplacement services, you'll increase the risk of having lawsuits filed against your company. When people are dissatisfied with your company, they'll find reasons to sue it if they think they've been terminated unlawfully or even think they can make such a claim just to get a settlement. This is more likely to happen if they don't know what to do after getting let go.
Because outplacement services can help an employee bounce back, you'll avoid lawsuits, because people will have help to focus on the future instead of being stuck in upset about their termination. You're showing them that you care about them, so they're less likely to get angry with you about the situation.
Savvy Brands Implement Outplacement Counseling
Now that you've read this article, you know all of the main benefits of outplacement counseling that make implementing it worthwhile. No matter the size of your company, implementing outplacement counseling will help it attract and retain the best talent, as well as grow. Not only will you satisfy employees, but you'll also attract more customers because of your positive public image.
Contact us today for a free consultation on how we can help you reap the benefits described here.