What to Do After Getting Laid Off: First 30 Days

What to do after getting laid off, in order: protect your health coverage, read the severance agreement before you sign it, file for unemployment right away, and leave your 401(k) where it is. Then work out your personal runway in months. Only after those steps, usually inside 30 days, should you weigh the next move: another role, consulting, or owning a business.

That order matters because a layoff pushes people toward fast decisions at the exact moment they have the least information. This guide is written for senior managers, directors and operators who have run teams and budgets and now need a calm plan. It comes from the franchise development team at College Hunks Hauling Junk®, where most owners came from corporate America or the military and almost none had worked in junk removal or moving before. We talk with people in this spot every week, so the last sections cover how to tell whether owning a business belongs on your list, and how to keep that option open without rushing it.

What should you do first after being laid off?

In the first three days, collect every document and date before you decide anything. You want the termination letter, your last day on payroll, the date your health coverage ends, the severance offer in writing, and the terms for any bonus, equity or accrued vacation. Ask HR for anything missing by email so you have a record.

File for unemployment with your state in the same week. Each state runs its own program and sets its own rules, including whether severance delays benefits, so let the state make that call rather than assuming you are ineligible. Then tell the people who share your finances. A household that knows the timeline makes better choices than one person carrying it alone.

What is the 60-day rule for layoffs?

The 60-day rule comes from the federal WARN Act, which requires covered employers (generally those with 100 or more employees) to give 60 days of notice before a plant closing or mass layoff. Employers who skip the notice can owe back pay and benefits for the missed days. Some states have their own versions with lower thresholds. If your layoff was part of a large cut and you got little or no notice, ask an employment attorney whether the rule applied.

Should you sign a severance agreement right away?

No. Read it slowly, and if you are 40 or older, federal law gives you time to do exactly that. Under the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act, a release of age discrimination claims generally must give you at least 21 days to consider it (45 days in a group layoff) and 7 days to revoke after you sign. The EEOC explains these waiver rules in plain language.

Pay attention to more than the payment amount. Look for:

• The release. What claims you give up in exchange for the payment.
• Non-compete and non-solicit terms. These can limit what you start or buy next, so read them with your future plans in mind.
• Payment schedule. A lump sum versus continued pay over several months changes your tax picture and sometimes your benefits timing.
• Cooperation and non-disparagement clauses. Know what you are agreeing to do after you leave.

An hour with an employment attorney costs far less than a clause you did not understand.

What happens to your health insurance after a layoff?

Your employer plan ends on a set date, and you usually have two ways to keep coverage. COBRA lets you stay on the same plan, generally for up to 18 months, but you pay the full premium plus an administrative charge, which surprises most people. You typically have 60 days to elect it, and coverage applies back to the day the old plan ended.

Losing job-based coverage also opens a Special Enrollment Period on the Marketplace, usually 60 days, where a plan may cost less than COBRA. A spouse’s employer plan is the third option. Compare all three before the window closes. Letting it lapse is one of the most expensive mistakes on this list.

What should you do with your 401(k) after a layoff?

Leave it alone until you have a plan. You can keep it in your former employer’s plan, roll it into an IRA, or roll it into a new employer’s plan later. Cashing it out before 59½ generally means ordinary taxes plus a 10% early withdrawal penalty, and it erases years of compounding.

Two details matter here. If you left the job in or after the year you turn 55, the IRS “rule of 55” may let you take withdrawals from that employer’s plan without the 10% penalty. And if you had a 401(k) loan, check when it comes due, because separation often speeds up the deadline. If you are considering using retirement savings to fund a business, there is a structured way to do it called a ROBS, covered in how ROBS works for buying a business. Talk to a CPA before moving a dollar.

How do you work out your personal runway?

Runway is the number of months you can cover your household costs without a new paycheck. Add your available cash, your severance after taxes, and your expected unemployment benefits, then divide by your monthly spending. That one number decides how patient you can afford to be.

Cut the spending you can pause without regret (subscriptions, travel, big purchases) in the first week, then recalculate. Most people find their runway is either longer or shorter than they guessed, and both answers change the next decision.

When should you start weighing your options after a layoff?

Once the first four steps are done and you know your runway, usually two to four weeks in. That is when you can compare paths on their merits instead of on fear. For managers over 50, your real options after a layoff covers each path in depth. The short comparison below is about what each path asks of you in the first month.

None of these requires a decision in month one. The goal is to keep good options open while your runway is healthy. If you are weighing the last two rows against each other, buying a franchise vs starting a business walks through that choice.

Why do laid-off managers look at franchising?

Because the skills that got them laid off from a large company are the ones a service business needs most: hiring, leading a team, managing a budget and holding people to a standard. A franchise adds the parts a manager has never had to build alone, like a brand, an operating system and people to call when something breaks.

At College HUNKS, owners lead teams rather than doing the hauling themselves, and the model is built for an owner-operator who runs the business full time. Our national Sales & Loyalty Center takes orders, schedules appointments and routes jobs to owners by zip code. Each owner works with a Marketing Coach and a Franchise Business Coach. And junk removal and College Hunks Moving® run in one territory under one brand, which gives an owner two service lines to build. Ops and fleet leaders will find more on the fit in businesses that fit an operations background.

The honest filter is capital. Candidates need a net worth of $200,000 or more and at least $75,000 in liquid capital, and the combined junk removal and moving investment runs $193,100 to $345,500 under Item 7 of our 2026 FDD. You can see the full investment breakdown on its own page. Owners take on real obligations too, including a local advertising commitment and Sales & Loyalty Center appointment fees. Both are set out in Items 6 and 11 of the FDD, and the franchise development team walks through each one on a call.

If that range fits the runway you just calculated, get your questions answered by the franchise development team before you rule it in or out.

Is a layoff the right time to buy a business?

It can be, as long as the decision is deliberate. Federal franchise rules give every candidate at least 14 calendar days with the Franchise Disclosure Document before signing anything or paying, and that pause works in your favor. Use it the same way you used the severance review period: read, ask questions, and talk to current owners.

The warning signs are the same for any business purchase. If you would be spending money you need for your household runway, if you are buying to escape the job search rather than because the business fits you, or if the seller is pushing you to move fast, slow down. The franchise requirements and process page lays out each step, and how long it takes to open a franchise helps you line the timeline up with your runway.

What do people get wrong in the first month after a layoff?

The most common mistakes come from moving fast before the paperwork is settled. The ones that cost the most:

• Signing severance the day it arrives, before reading the release or the non-compete.
• Letting the COBRA or Marketplace window pass without choosing coverage.
• Cashing out a 401(k) to feel safe and paying the penalty for it.
• Waiting to file for unemployment because severance “probably” disqualifies them.
• Taking the first offer out of panic, then starting the search again six months later.
• Posting about the layoff in anger. Former colleagues are your best referral network.

Give yourself a short break too. A few days away from the search is not lost time. It usually makes the next conversation better.

What should you do next?

Work through the first 30 days in order, protect your coverage and your savings, and know your runway before you choose a direction. If owning a business is on your list and you’re weighing whether a College Hunks Hauling Junk® franchise fits your goals, talk to the franchise development team and see if your market is still open. We read every inquiry and there’s no pressure, just answers.

This information is not an offer to sell or solicitation to buy a franchise. A franchise offering can only be made through the delivery of a Franchise Disclosure Document. Certain states regulate the offer and sale of franchises; if you are a resident of one of these states, we will not offer you a franchise unless we have complied with applicable pre-sale registration and disclosure requirements in your state.

College Hunks Hauling Junk®, College Hunks Moving®, and the H.U.N.K.S logo are registered trademarks of CHHJ Franchising, L.L.C. © 2026 CHHJ Franchising, L.L.C. All rights reserved.