Thousands in Meta, Twitter laid off: How to be financially prepared for sudden job cuts. 5 points

Emergency fund: 

It is always prudent to keep 6 months to one year’s income aside as an emergency fund. In case, you face a job cut, you can at least depend on this money to survive the next few months till you find another job. 

Ideally, the money should be kept somewhere accessible like liquid funds or saving accounts so that it can be easily withdrawn at the time of need. 

Health insurance: 

One should never depend on the company’s health insurance completely, and one big reason for this is, in case of job cuts, you are no longer a beneficiary of the scheme.  So if there is a health emergency when you are out of work, then you will have to pay the bill from your pocket, which will further enhance your financial stress. 

Hence, it is always advisable to opt for personal health insurance for you and your family. 

Budgeting: 

Since financial resources are already strained, it is extremely essential that we take a closer look at our expenses and revise the monthly budget. 

There are a few things that cannot be avoided like food, utility bills, EMIs etc. Track those and then accordingly decide on your monthly expenses.

Reduce optional expenses:

When there is regular income, you should always set aside money for savings,  recreational activities and also optional expenses like eating out, catching a movie at the cinema, magazine subscriptions, etc. But, you should try to completely eliminate such expenses during the current emergency. For the time being, you should also stop the savings and investments.  

Avoid new debt

The one thing you should avoid at all costs, at this time, is to take on debt such as a personal loan or a loan against your credit card. These loans might seem like a relatively easy way to get out of money troubles in the short term, but their interest rate is extremely high.