American hiring practice treats an unexplained period of unemployment as something requiring explanation, and career advice is written about how to account for it. Continuity of employment is read as evidence about the person.
The recruiter call
American professionals in many fields receive unsolicited approaches regularly, and taking the call is normal, expected and not disloyal. The external market is present in working life continuously rather than at moments of change.
WARN
The federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act requires sixty days’ notice of a mass layoff or plant closing at larger employers. It is the main federal protection and it is a notice requirement, not a restriction on the decision.
The severance package
American severance is generally not required by law. It is offered in exchange for a signed release of claims, and the amount is a negotiation. What a German receives by statute, an American receives by agreement.
The 401(k)
American retirement saving is portable by design — the account belongs to the employee and moves with them between employers. The pension is detached from the job deliberately, so that leaving costs nothing in accrued benefit.
Staying marketable
Stay marketable. Keep your résumé current. Always be networking. Your network is your net worth.
American career advice, given as a permanent instruction rather than as something to do when looking. Security is described as a property of the individual, maintained continuously.
COBRA
American health insurance is usually tied to the job, and federal law allows a departing employee to continue the employer’s plan — at the full unsubsidised cost, which is typically several times what they were paying. The bridge exists and it is expensive.
The layoff
American reductions in force are announced publicly, executed quickly and often in a single day, with severance offered rather than required. The word is neutral in American English and carries no implication of fault on either side.
Employment at will
The American default: either party may end the relationship at any time for any lawful reason, without notice. Forty-nine states apply it. There is no statutory dismissal protection accruing with service, and no requirement to justify the decision.
Jobsicherheit vs. Gehalt
Some graduates or applicants eventually reach the point where a decision has to be made: Am I looking for a job that is secure? Or one with a great salary?