Getting fired over Zoom. How rude!

A mortgage company CEO recently fired 900 employees over a Zoom call.

The company Better.com is reportedly in the process of laying off 9% of its total workforce. The CEO took to Zoom in a casual vest, sitting at what looks like a messy employee cafeteria table, and delivered the news. Seems pretty cold to me. Honestly, an email would have been a better choice.

Imagine, you get the Zoom invite and you sign in at your dining room table for an expected work call. Sitting next to you is your 4th grader, forced home because some kid who sneezed then tested positive and your kid was on the bus with him a week ago. So that call gets heard by the family creating the ultimate awkward.

I've been fired a few times in my career. When I was the head of the College Republican National Committee in DC, after a long-drawn-out battle with the RNC Chairman, the RNC officially fired me, ending my healthcare, paycheck, and locking me out of my office while I was away on a US Marine Reserve Weekend. Since I was holding an elected position, I refused to leave and ended up opening a new office and raising more money through a fundraising company than the original budget from the RNC. Just to poke them in the eye, I gave myself a raise.

That was a political battle and most employees are not in a position to do the same thing. But oftentimes, getting fired can be the best thing for you if you are able to pick yourself up and pursue another interest. Either way, getting fired is a punch in the gut and it takes some time to adjust and decide how you will move forward.

Getting fired over a Zoom call is likely going to be more common rather than less and for what it's worth I think it's a step in the wrong direction.

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Bill Spadea. Any opinions expressed are Bill's own. Bill Spadea is on the air weekdays from 6 to 10 a.m., talkin’ Jersey, taking your calls at 1-800-283-1015.

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Filed Under: Zoom