You lost your job.
It seems surreal not having a building to report to in the morning. Fear and worry now live in your head, sit at your kitchen table - and never seem to leave.
It feels hopeless, but you have to take this step by step. There are things you can do to protect yourself and your family, and to get moving toward a new job.
First, when you're let go, have a lawyer look at any document your company wants you to sign before you sign it, according to Cheryl Spaulding, president of the nonprofit Joseph's People in Downingtown, which helps unemployed people.
There might be noncompete clauses (your company may preclude you from working for another company in the same field) or complex wording about pensions.
If you can't afford an attorney, call your county's bar association for help.
Be sure to take nothing you are not permitted to take, Spaulding said, such as company software. On the other hand, make sure you have the names, numbers, and home e-mail addresses of everyone you worked with, for later networking.
Next, file for unemployment compensation. The best way to do this is online; at go.philly.com/jobbing, you will find links for the Pennsylvania and New Jersey Department of Labor sites.
If you don't have a computer and can't access one at a library or at an employment-help center such as CareerLink in Pennsylvania (60 locations), or One Stop Centers in New Jersey, use the phone.
To apply in Pennsylvania, call 1-888-313-7284. In South Jersey, call 856-507-2340.
You can also apply by mail, with applications from a help center or a nearby state legislator's office.
Next, you should sign up immediately for COBRA continued health insurance, Spaulding said. If your company does not offer access to COBRA, find out what other options it can suggest for continued health coverage. The government's economic-stimulus bill will provide workers a 65 percent subsidy for COBRA premiums for up to nine months after losing their jobs.
After you lose your job, do not isolate yourself, said John Dodds, director of the Philadelphia Unemployment Project. Make sure you continue to leave your house and talk to people.
It's also important that you tell your children what's going on. "Let them know it's temporary, and that the whole family will be working on it together," Dodds said.
And, he stressed, don't feel ashamed. "It's happening everywhere, and this is not your fault," he said.
