Moving Against The Tide: Startups look for laid-off employees

More than 22,000 start-up employees have lost their jobs this year following an economic meltdown. 

However, moving against the tide, some companies are actively reaching out to laid-off employees for open roles. 

“At times, candidates who were laid off in another organisation need more support during the initial induction phase, either because they have been out of touch for a while, or because of the entire experience of being laid off,” said Sonal Arora, country manager of staffing firm Gi Group Holding. 

Turning layoffs into an opportunity 

IT firm Prolifics does a lot of hiring which includes all types of candidates – passive (those not actively looking for a job) and active (those looking for a job). One of its strategies for on-boarding talent fast is maintaining a short-list of laid-off employees, who can join quickly as they do not have to serve a notice period. 

“It creates a win-win situation as the laid-off employee gets a job and we can manage our skill shortages effectively,” Sharath Nag Rahula, Global Talent Acquisition Head, Prolifics, said. 

Since the start of 2022, around 15 percent of its total hires have been employees who were laid off from other firms. The company hires talent in areas like data analytics and test automation.

Jaro Education saw a 100 percent increase in recruitment this year compared to 2021. CEO Ranjita Raman said the surge is a result of the company's ability to prioritise spending on revenue-generating activities and hiring mindfully as per the need right from inception. 

HR teams at Jaro Education consider candidates with core tech skills, who are adaptive to change, and possess good emotional quotient and other soft skills. 

No issues with a career gap

The Gi Group is open to hiring candidates who have been laid off or have had a career break due to any reason. The staffing firm reaches out to these candidates through regular social media posts, job boards, and employee referral programmes. 

The firm actively hires candidates with a break in their career through its Returnship programme. The programme encourages employees to refer candidates in their network who have been laid off and are exploring opportunities. 

Around 10 percent of its recruitment in the last six months have been through the programme, hiring  candidates experienced in recruitment, operations, sales, etc.

Using the same referral route, influencer marketing and management company PDP Media hired laid-off candidates skilled in communications, management, and data analytics, among others.

Between May and July 2022, 16 percent of Netafim Agricultural Financing Agency’s (NAFA) hires were laid-off candidates. As a policy, the company gives preference to laid off candidates with merit.

“Laid off is not a negative for NAFA,” said Tejashree Chogale, HR Head, , NAFA.