How a GM layoff email sent to employees triggered a storm on TikTok

Why this TikTok went viral – why any TikTok goes viral – is unknown. It’s not the first layoff in 2024 at a big company. It’s not the first layoff at GM. GM is GM, sure, but it’s not a social media firecracker like Tesla. But here we are.

I reached out to Lalgee who said he wasn’t surprised about the storm he generated on TikTok, and later with a post on Instagram.

In Michigan and elsewhere, of course, many people are jaded after seeing rounds of brutal job cuts in the auto industry over the decades. Lost your job by email? It happens. Weirdly, many people with long careers kind of expect to be treated badly; they’ve seen plenty of examples of corporate callousness.

But Lalgee, 37, said many younger people outside of the industry currently see GM as a stable, legacy brand, not a startup or tech company that would be more likely to let go of workers. Younger workers – particularly in Generation Z, the Zoomers born from 1997 through 2012 – often witness companies marketing themselves as a place with a culture that cares, a workplace that treats people like family.

GM even had its own upbeat TV commercial in 2022 with the soft and fuzzy tagline, “Earn a Living. Make a Life.” Andreya Triana’s “Beautiful People” gave a happy soundtrack while celebrating some real GM faces in the factories.

“Beautiful World. Beautiful People.”

The commercial stated: “There are jobs where you earn a living. Then there are GM jobs that help you make a life. Let’s celebrate those who give their all during their shifts, and even more afterwards.”

Not exactly setting you up to expect an early morning email to say so long after 30-plus years on the job.

Right now, Lalgee said, many companies are struggling to gain loyalty from employees. In the recruitment universe, he said, he hears comments all the time about how many younger people don’t want to work anymore, or people don’t want to stay in one place too long.

“Companies ask for loyalty, but they’re really not giving that type of treatment back,” Lalgee said.

The job market has shifted since just a year ago, Lalgee said, making it harder for people to find work, especially if they lost jobs in white-collar fields.

He suggested planning to hunt for a job longer than you might think, tapping into anyone and everyone in your network to find a job, and joining online communities, such as Slack groups, in your profession to talk about career opportunities. His website is therealestrecruiter.com – where you can also find his podcast.

Expect much competition, Lalgee said.

Oh, and don’t attempt to take a video of yourself getting laid off and then post it online as a way to get revenge. One TikTok trend involves “Get Ready With Me Videos” where employees film themselves getting laid off or fired. If things aren’t handled well by the company, the video can go viral.

Personally, Lalgee said, he would never do that type of video because you’re not likely to land on your feet anytime soon.

Companies, he said, should be mindful of how they handle layoffs, including trying to put themselves in the employee’s shoes. He doesn’t recommend laying people off via a mass email or big Zoom call.

Digital mortgage lender Better.com faced a great deal of backlash on social media when its CEO abruptly laid off about 900 employees via a Zoom call in late 2021.

In 2022, Elon Musk, who took over Twitter, faced intense criticism after many employees suddenly were locked out of their emails at night before even being notified that they were let go, according to reports.

Tesla took heat in 2024 for sending out an insensitive email about layoffs that reportedly started with “Dear Employee.”

GM did not respond to questions about how it handled the Nov. 15 job cuts.

Tara Stewart Kuhnen, director of GM corporate affairs, emailed a statement to the Detroit Free Press: “In order to win in this competitive market, we need to optimize for speed and excellence. This includes operating with efficiency, ensuring we have the right team structure, and focusing on our top priorities as a business.”

Moving into 2025, many economists aren’t forecasting a recession, but some expect that more employees could face painful job cuts.

Those employed by automakers and auto suppliers face significant challenges ahead, even as companies like GM remain on track to have fantastic earnings in 2024.

“It seems contradictory to eliminate jobs while posting such good numbers, but I think management knows things won’t always be good in the auto industry,” said Morningstar auto analyst David Whiston.

GM announced in August that at least 1,000 software jobs and possibly up to 1,500 jobs would be eliminated. The Detroit Free Press reported at the time that 634 of the jobs being cut then were at the GM Global Technical Center in Warren based on information provided to the state of Michigan.

On Nov. 15, GM cut another 1,000 jobs, including 507 jobs at the GM Tech Center based on information provided to the state.“ There’s still a large money-losing EV business and threats like eventual Chinese competition, current Tesla competition, pricing coming down harder at some point, and possible Trump tariffs,” Whiston said.

At some point, Whiston said, the U.S. economy eventually will face a recession. Auto companies, he said, want the leanest possible cost structure that doesn’t jeopardize the need to reinvest in the business.

The most job cut announcements in November came from the auto industry overall with 11,506 planned cuts, according to data from global outplacement and business and executive coaching firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

For the year, automotive companies have announced 45,820 job cuts, a 59% increase from year-to-date figures through November last year.

Andrew Challenger, senior vice president of Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc. in Chicago, said people don’t lose their jobs immediately when such announcements are made. In some cases, the actual job reductions could take place in the next few weeks or months.

Challenger noted that the uptick from last year in job cuts is a trend to watch, but the numbers being announced are nothing close to the levels of job reductions that we’d see in a recession.

“It’s not a positive sign. It’s not a panic sign, either,” Challenger said.

U.S.-based employers announced 57,727 cuts in November, a 3.8% increase from October and up 26.8% from the reductions announced in November 2023, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

U.S. employers announced 722,566 job cuts announced so far this year through November, up 5.2% same from the same time period last year. Challenger, Gray & Christmas reviews announcements relating to job reductions that are made in investor calls, government reports and elsewhere.

Nearly 40% of companies reported layoffs in 2024, the outplacement firm noted, saying that was a noticeable increase from 28% in 2023. The outlook for 2025 appears cautiously optimistic.

Not all layoffs will include a generous severance.

GM did provide a severance package, but did not disclose what it was to the media. Bernard did not say what his package included.

Other sources said some people who were laid off were offered six months of base salary, a prorated percentage of their bonus based on time worked in 2024, and an additional health care supplement.

The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification, or WARN notice, for the Nov. 15 layoffs at the GM Tech Center had details of an additional payout in Michigan. “Beginning on Nov. 15, 2024, affected employees will no longer report to work, their normal work responsibilities will cease, and they will be separated. The affected employees will receive a payment equivalent to their wages and benefits as if they were employed through Jan. 14, 2025.”

WARN requires a 60-day notice before a mass layoff or plant closing. The notice applies to employers with 100 or more full-time employees (not counting workers who have fewer than six months on the job).

The best way to prepare for potential job cuts in 2025 is to shore up any emergency fund, said Sam Huszczo, a chartered financial analyst in Southfield. Typically, you’d want to be able to cover around three months to six months of expenses out of your emergency savings if possible.

Huszczo said he’s talked to many retirees who are aware of the TikTok, and many felt it was a bad look for GM. “It’s a long time to dedicate your life to a company to just get an email,” he said.

Yet, it’s also realistic to anticipate that job cuts can hit suddenly.

As the auto industry gets smaller, Huszczo said, he’d expect more reductions in the labor force. It’s important to network and pay attention to signs that you could be let go. If your manager suggests that cuts are ahead in your department, take that advice to heart and look for another opportunity.

More and more, people who end up suddenly being forced out of a job they’ve held for a lifetime don’t get much closure at their companies.

Bernard is now technically retired from GM. He turned in his company car on the Tuesday after the layoff, as required. GM sent him his personal belongings in a box to his home. He told me that he has nothing bad to say about GM.

A severance package requires that laid off workers not disparage the company.

Bernard had been offered a buyout in 2023, but he didn’t take it. He thought about it for about an hour last year, he said, and decided he really enjoyed his job, so he hoped to continue working there.

Bernard has saved money, too, putting some extra bonus money over the years into his retirement fund, instead of spending it all. He’s worked with a financial planner ever since he began his career. Before the layoff, he had an eye on possibly retiring as early as January 2026.

He’s had fun, too, including enjoying the Woodward Dream Cruise each year. He serves as the president of Detroit’s chapter of Lambda Car Club, an auto enthusiast group for LGBTQ+ members. Bernard has a green 1972 Austin Mini and an Arctic White 1963 Buick Riviera. He attributes some of his enthusiasm for cars to an uncle in California who was a big-time car enthusiast, too.

Bernard and his husband, a retired nurse, do not have children and don’t expect to face a serious financial hardship.

Others with a family to support, of course, are quite concerned about what’s next about their financial future.

Right now, Bernard said, he’s looking around for opportunities, hoping to stay connected to the auto industry.

Bernard’s most recent job at GM, one that he held for more than 17 years, was associate director for competitor intelligence, meaning his duties involved keeping GM informed about what other automakers were working on when it came to “future business, product, and propulsion strategies,” according to his LinkedIn profile.

He also served for 16 years as head of GM’s employee resource group for LGBTQ+ and allied employees. He started as an intern in 1984 and then joined GM full-time in 1986 as an analyst in strategic planning and design analysis.

Bernard graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1986, according to his LinkedIn profile.

He graduated with a Master of Business Administration from Harvard Business School in 1990. Bernard was part of a GM Fellowship program at Harvard and was fully supported for two years.

When I talked with Bernard by phone, I asked him if he was actually awake at 5 a.m. when he got that email. He recalled that he woke up around 6:15 a.m., like he normally does, and got showered and dressed for work. He then went to the computer and saw a text message asking him to check his email.

Bernard said many people reached out to him after seeing the TikTok or the LinkedIn post, some GM employees who were laid off in this round, others who were cut earlier. He met with some laid-off employees one morning in early December to share their experiences.

“It does help to talk about it,” he said. “It’s something where there’s still some degree of shock in there that I’ll probably never completely get rid of.”

He said people who lose a job need to talk to a spouse, siblings, parents. “You don’t want to keep all that stuff bottled up inside.” Yet Bernard remains upbeat about his future. He said the social media experience provided some positive connections. “Ten years ago, I would not feel as good as I do about myself and my career. Literally people I’ve never met reached out to me.”

Contact personal finance columnist Susan Tompor: stompor@freepress.com. Follow her on X (Twitter) @tompor.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: GM layoff email triggers much criticism by recruiting expert on TikTok