You've Been Demoted

Don't Shoot Yourself in the Foot

In the 2024 workplace, not only are promotions scarce. Demotions are becoming common. That is, if you factor in how many forms a demotion can take. Those include:

Loss of title

Fewer to supervise

Pay cut

Being removed from overseeing an account

Reporting to a person younger

Dropping a class year in a law firm

Less of an aura of power and influence.

An organization in crisis – private sector, non-profit, government – could get “trigger happy” in making changes in personnel matters. Almost 50 percent of HR heads note that demotions are happening in their workplace. With competition becoming a dog-maul-dog fight, even the once staid law firm sector is demoting equity partners.

Because of the shame involved, it’s no surprise that more than 50 percent quit after being demoted. As a career coach, especially since I specialize in the over-50 professional, I classify that decision as one of those in which you probably are shooting yourself in the foot.

Sure, eventually when you process this development and get your ducks in a row about the Next, it might be smart to exit. However, rage quitting can leave you stranded in a labor market currently not kind to the white collar.

Actually, you can wind up “learning on the company” if, as Indeed recommends, you request focused and detailed feedback on the factors driving this decision by the organization. The tutorial from your superiors can be priceless.

For example, when you connect the dots on the input you could realize that you’re entrepreneurial. That makes you a bad fit in a buttoned-down slow-moving sector. So, you seek out a start-up or a risk-taking industry like entertainment for your Next.

Or you can get it that you have to leave you comfort zone of old-line media relations, in which you’ve been a killer, and become effective in posting on social media and influencing the influencers. Soon enough, when you showcase what you can do in that space near to you there could be a promotion. Or you could go out there and find you’re in demand again.

There is also the matter of income. Since the white collar job market is currently in recession it might be a long time before you are hired elsewhere. That time can be longer if you are over-50. According to the US Labor Department it will take you 12 weeks longer than if you were 25 to 34. If you stay put for a while you can collect a paycheck while figuring out how you will reset.

Most of those I coach over-50 who have been demoted realize that, after they cool down and research options, they can start fresh in another line of work that pays well if they become certified or licensed. Usually that could be in the trades such as auto mechanics or in regulated sectors such as real estate. With increased longevity, the phrase “too late to start in it” is being applied to fewer lines of work. By 2026, almost 11 percent of the workforce will be over-75.

However, if you decide it’s in your emotional self-interest to exit right away, first consult an employment lawyer. You may be “saved,” as it’s phrased in personnel matters. As soon as the organization hears “lawyer,” they could back off on the demotion. The powers-that-be might realize the decision was made in haste. Or a lawyer can assist you in negotiating some kind of severance package. A big piece of that is health insurance. Most personal bankruptcies result from medical bills.

When in pain because of a career matter no one wants to hear a very old adage: Present adversity is a wonderful platform for future extreme success. It really is true, though.

After Bill Clinton lost out on being re-elected governor he reset into a more effective politico.

It might have taken getting fired for Steve Jobs to evolve into Steve Jobs.

And, who knows how progressive law firms such as Covington and Paul Weiss will refine their game in the right-of-center Trump Administration?

Meanwhile, a useful read during this time of transition for you is the 2024 book “Nobody Cares About Your Career: Why Failure Is Good, The Great Ones Play Hurt, and Other Hard Truths.” It’s by former Barstool Sports CEO Eika Ayers Badan.