Hard to Fire
Hard to Fire · Chapter 11 and Appendix C · Checklist

Layoff Fire Drill Checklist

Find the gaps that would turn the first 72 hours after a layoff into a reconstruction project.

Run the five crisis questions first. If Access could lock you out today, fix that before alphabetizing anything.

Five crisis questions

AccessCould you reach every personal account if your work phone, email, and laptop disappeared today?
Household factsCould your household find benefits identifiers, continuation information, and the Chapter 10 runway numbers without a work login?
Permitted recordsDo you have lawful personal copies of the employment and benefits records you are allowed to retain, without copying company material or accessing systems after authorization ends?
NetworkCould you reach important professional contacts and two relevant recruiters without using company systems?
FamilyDoes your spouse or partner know how you would hold the first conversation and review the numbers?
Resolved0/30
Assigned0
Still open30
Answer Access first. A gap that could lock you out today goes ahead of the rest of the filing cabinet.
Scheduled: Not scheduled
30 actions still unresolved. Record the next maintenance date before you stop.

Thirty-item lawful portability inventory

You're done when every applicable action is Done, Assigned to an owner and date, or marked Not applicable. A checked box doesn't authorize moving company information.

Documents (8)0/8 resolved
1

Obtain your last two or three performance reviews.

Use an employer-provided personal download or request the records from HR. Do not forward company email or attachments unless that method and retention are authorized.

Not started
2

Obtain your current job description.

Save a public posting, use an employer-provided personal download, or request it from HR.

Not started
3

Record current benefits facts.

Keep the summary, carrier, policy or member identifiers, covered dependents, and continuation information through an authorized personal download, plan portal, or administrator request.

Not started
4

Record your compensation history.

Use authorized personal records for base salary, bonus targets and payouts, equity grants, and vesting schedules. Request missing records rather than copying restricted files.

Not started
5

Locate your offer letter and amendments.

Keep only copies you are entitled and authorized to retain. Request missing personal employment records from HR.

Not started
6

Collect certifications, licenses, and continuing education records.

Use issuing-body records or copies you personally own. Do not copy an employer's restricted training materials.

Not started
7

Collect retirement-plan records.

Obtain the summary plan description, vesting schedule, current balance, and beneficiary confirmation from your personal plan portal or plan administrator.

Not started
8

Collect recommendations and written praise provided for personal retention.

Ask for a permitted personal copy when needed. Do not forward company email, client material, or restricted attachments without authorization.

Not started
Contacts (6)0/6 resolved
9

Build an individual personal professional contact list.

Record only details people gave you for personal professional use and that you are authorized to keep. Never bulk-export a directory, CRM, address book, customer list, or calendar.

Not started
10

Record at least two relevant recruiters.

Keep their public or personally provided business contact details outside company systems.

Not started
11

Record your manager and skip-level contact details when permitted.

Use only public details or information they gave you for personal professional use.

Not started
12

Confirm three to five potential references.

Ask whether they are comfortable serving later, then retain only contact details you are authorized to keep.

Not started
13

Record the official HR or benefits contact.

Use contact information from plan documents, a public benefits channel, or information provided for personal follow-up.

Not started
14

Record outside mentors and professional contacts.

Keep public or personally provided details that exist independently of your employer's systems.

Not started
Financial (5)0/5 resolved
15

Complete the Chapter 10 household calculation.

Record current burn, post-loss burn, liquid assets, and runway. Chapter 10 owns the formula.

Not started
16

Obtain a continuation-coverage cost estimate.

Use current plan documents or ask the benefits administrator about COBRA or the applicable alternative, deadlines, and cost. Verify the answer before adding it to Chapter 10.

Not started
17

Date-check your Chapter 10 runway inputs.

If income, liquid assets, benefits costs, or monthly spending changed, rerun the source-home calculation. Do not create a second emergency-fund target here.

Not started
18

Record employer-benefit accounts and deadlines.

Include applicable HSA, FSA, commuter, stock-purchase, and dependent-care balances, forfeiture rules, and rollover or use deadlines. Verify each item with current plan documents or the administrator.

Not started
19

Review tax withholding after an income change.

Estimate the effect using current records, then route jurisdiction-specific or uncertain tax questions to a qualified tax professional.

Not started
Legal (4)0/4 resolved
20

Locate your employment agreement and amendments.

Use only a lawful personal copy you are entitled and authorized to retain. Note any non-compete, non-solicitation, NDA, IP assignment, and return-of-property terms.

Not started
21

Read the non-compete terms.

Record the stated duration, geography, and competitor definition without deciding enforceability yourself. Route jurisdiction-specific restrictions and job-move questions to qualified local employment counsel.

Not started
22

Read the non-solicitation terms.

Record the stated restrictions on colleagues, clients, and business without testing the boundary yourself. Route jurisdiction-specific questions to qualified local employment counsel.

Not started
23

Identify qualified employee-side local counsel.

Record a name and contact method before a deadline exists. Seek advice before signing when rights, money, restrictions, deadlines, or facts justify it.

Not started
Family (4)0/4 resolved
24

Agree on the first spouse or partner conversation.

Lead with verified facts, written benefits or severance terms actually offered, and the Chapter 10 runway numbers.

Not started
25

Agree on an extended-family communication plan.

Decide who will be told, what will be shared, and when, before a public update makes the decision for you.

Not started
26

Plan an age-appropriate conversation with children, if applicable.

Choose simple facts, reassurance, and the immediate routine. Do not promise a search timeline you cannot know.

Not started
27

Verify a partner's benefits as a possible backup.

Confirm eligibility, any special-enrollment window, effective date, and cost through current plan documents or the administrator.

Not started
Digital (3)0/3 resolved
28

Move personal account recovery off work-controlled access.

Replace work email, work phone, and work-device authentication on personal accounts with personal recovery methods. Do not alter authentication for company accounts.

Not started
29

Remove genuinely personal files from a work device only through permitted methods.

Follow policy and keep company, client, employee, regulated, privileged, credential, and proprietary material on company systems.

Not started
30

Build a lawful professional portfolio.

Use public work or material you own or have written authorization to retain. Do not export work contacts, calendars, templates, project files, client material, or company-owned content.

Not started

Lawful-retention boundary

Keep only records and contact details you're entitled and authorized to retain. Access isn't ownership. A file being about you doesn't make it yours, and moving it to a personal device doesn't create permission.

The website doesn't provide legal, tax, benefits, policy, or employer approval.

Rachel's Sunday

Rachel fixed personal account recovery, recorded benefits facts, organized permitted personal documents, and rebuilt the personal side of her contact list. She scheduled the Chapter 10 calculation and household conversation next.

The useful result wasn't a score. It was fewer things capable of consuming the first 72 hours.

Don't bring home a binder that frightens the dog

Treat this like checking smoke detectors. Fix personal access, locate permitted records, write down benefits facts, and discuss the household numbers. Preparation should lower the temperature, not raise it.