Usually a layoff isn’t strictly related to personal performance but is instead the result of economic cycles or the company’s need to restructure itself, the firm itself going out of business, or a ch...Usually a layoff isn’t strictly related to personal performance but is instead the result of economic cycles or the company’s need to restructure itself, the firm itself going out of business, or a change in the function of the employer. If the decision to terminate was the employee’s, the willingness of the employer to rehire is often contingent upon the relationship the employee had with the employer, the amount of notice given by the employee prior to departure, and the needs of the employer.