Managing Layoffs Humanely

When a layoff cannot be avoided, design it to preserve people's dignity without breaking the remaining team. Planning and communication that limit damage.

Thailand's 2026 job market continues to see ongoing layoffs. Ministry of Labour statistics show an average of around 40,000 people laid off per month. The cumulative number of unemployed Section 33 insured persons at the end of 2025 stood at 531,779 cases, up 20 percent from the previous year. In this situation, HR teams handling layoffs have a heavy workload. Handling it without humanity creates trauma for both those who leave and those who stay. Designing a process that limits damage and preserves dignity is an HR skill the market values highly today.

The Impact of a Badly Handled Layoff

A poorly designed layoff has effects on many levels.

The Damage Caused

• Those who leave suffer trauma and financial damage
• Those who stay lose trust in the company permanently
• Managers who deliver the news carry stress that takes a long time to recover from
• The company's employer brand suffers in the long term
• Talented people who stay start looking for jobs because they see the company does not take care of people
• Legal risk from failing to comply with labour law

Limiting damage across every dimension is HR's core job during a layoff, not just sending termination letters.

Planning the Layoff Before the Announcement

Good planning starts 4 to 8 weeks before the announcement.

Steps Before the Announcement

1. Set selection criteria that are honest and unbiased
2. Consult legal counsel on labour law compliance
3. Calculate a severance package that is more generous than the legal minimum
4. Prepare outplacement support such as career counseling and a job board
5. Prepare a communication plan, both internal and external
6. Train managers to deliver the message
7. Prepare IT and security for a respectful offboarding

Good planning reduces chaos on announcement day, so the team can cope and damage is contained.

Fair Selection Criteria

Deciding who leaves requires defensible criteria.

Criteria You Can Use

• Performance documented in the most recent review
• Roles the business strategy no longer needs
• Skills that do not match the future direction
• Ranking within the same group using data
• Considering gender, age and minority status to avoid bias

Documenting the criteria and decisions is important in case of a lawsuit later. Having no documentation is a major risk. An audit log showing which criteria each decision used protects the company.

Designing the Severance Package

Generous severance is not just a legal matter; it is an investment in reputation and in the people who stay.

Elements of Good Severance

• Compensation based on length of service, 2 to 4 times the legal minimum
• A pro-rated bonus for the period worked
• Continued health insurance for 3 to 6 months after leaving
• Job search assistance such as resume writing and LinkedIn coaching
• An extended window to exercise vested stock options
• A choice of lump-sum or monthly payment
• Acknowledging their contribution in a personal letter

Investing in severance is better than saving budget, because it costs less than the long-term damage to the brand and to the people who stay that a minimum-only layoff causes.

A good layoff does not mean it does not hurt. It means it hurts with dignity, and with runway to move on.

Announcement Day and Communication

Announcement day is the day the whole company will remember. Detailed planning is essential.

Managing Announcement Day

1. Announce individually, not in a group meeting where everyone finds out at once
2. Managers speak to their own team members, not an unfamiliar HR person
3. Have HR and legal on standby for immediate questions
4. Have emotional support ready
5. Avoid timing that falls on important days such as an employee's birthday or holiday
6. Use a private space, not an open-plan area
7. Give those leaving time to say goodbye to colleagues with dignity

Announcing over a single Zoom call to 100 people, as happened in the international market in 2022, created a major backlash. Committing the time to individual conversations is far more worthwhile.

Taking Care of Those Who Stay

After a layoff, those who stay experience survivor guilt and damaged trust. Recovery is ongoing work.

Caring for Those Who Stay

• Communicate the reasons and process directly, not vaguely
• Open up 1-on-1s for people to vent their feelings
• Redistribute workload fairly
• Commit to no further layoffs for a stated period, if possible
• Invest in team building and rebuilding trust
• Monitor engagement and flight risk closely

Neglecting those who stay leads to high post-layoff attrition. Many of the talented people who survive this round will leave in the next. Read Why Top Talent Leaves for a deep dive.

Supporting Those Who Leave After the Layoff

Support after departure shows the company still respects people.

Support

• Outplacement services covering resume coaching and interview prep
• Introductions through the company's network
• Honest and supportive references
• Alumni network events
• Opening the door to boomerang hires if positions return

These investments build a reputation that the company takes care of people. Those who leave tell their network, and that network is the company's future candidate pool.

Connecting to the Bigger Strategy

Handling layoffs humanely connects with the entire HR strategy.

See good Workforce Planning, which reduces the need for layoffs, and Internal Mobility, which lets people move within the company instead of being cut.

After a layoff, rebuilding trust connects with Psychological Safety and Employee Experience.

For HR teams that need to manage layoffs, browse humane HR courses in Plants.work Learn or talk to mentors with crisis management experience on the Mentors page. In short, when a layoff is unavoidable, design it to respect everyone's dignity. Those who manage this protect both people and the brand in the long term.