Honest question to the long-time HR people and MDs on here…I think I’m getting laid off. Or my boss is. Or someone I manage is. The relationships I’ve build with all of them (and my peers) matter to me and I don’t want to lose touch. I understand that not everyone will feel this way, of course. But could the Schwab people still with the firm get in trouble for keeping those relationships intact? Is it frowned upon?
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In a really good shop, your coworkers can feel like family. TD (at least my little corner of it) definitely felt that way. It's not though. It's more like a church or temple. You're in as long as you keep showing up at services (the job: virtual or otherwise), but once you're out, you're out. I've worked for plenty of other FinTech firms where impromptu happy hour invites get sent out, or smaller lunch dates, etc. ex-employees included. TD was not that way and Schwab, I imagine, much less so. That said, we don't live in a world (yet) except in very extreme cases (if you went to work for say, the NSA) where your employer completely controls your social life. Jus say'in.
Schwab is a cult so maybe "discouraged." I add FTEs and contractors on LinkedIn a lot before they leave so we can see how the other person is doing and possibly network in the future.
How old are you? Are you genuinely asking if you’re allowed to be friends with people who have been let go? This must be a post for attention seeking, as I cannot believe any adult human in full time employment would genuinely ask this
The only situation where the firm may say to keep some distance if the employee was terminated for fraud or something similar (this did happen once to me, but wasn't "you cannot ever contact them" just to not be in contact with them via work). Otherwise, they cannot and would not tell employees to to not speak with folks who are laid off, leave, or are terminated for other reasons unless there was some kind of litigation or threat of litigation involved. And even then, could not be a total ban, just cannot talk to them about work I'd imagine during the course of the litigation. I have many folks I keep in contact with at Schwab and other work places. If you are laid off and didn't get a chance to get their personal contact info before access is shut down, you can always use LinkedIn.
How deep do you have to be, to ask if the company can dictate your friends?
OP. Do me a favor and read your post out loud, and then think to yourself "Is this really they way I want to live my life?"
Who fu----g cares what the company thinks? If you've made friends, great keep 'em. Better yet follow them out of this he-l hole to someplace new.
Schwab can be fascist and is 100% a cult mentality but even they can't dictate who you talk to in your personal life. If they ever get there, we should all salute them...with our middle fingers.
I don't think it's discouraged, but it will depend on the person. People leave and come back to Schwab all the time.
Curious, why do you believe you’ll be one of the people laid off. Or your org for that matter. What side of the business do you work in?
If it is a true friendship - you will know how to get in touch with them personally. Or if your position is no longer needed you can reach out to them and give them your personal contact information. No reason to discard relationships/friendships especially if your role is eliminated - it wasn't your choice.
Nice thoughts but in most cases they or you will move on.
Rare for people to keep any "work" relationships going after departing especially under involuntary circumstances.