The layoff conversation is over. Maybe you’re sitting in your car in the parking lot, or you’re back at your desk clearing out your email. Whatever happens next in your head—the spiral of rent, car payment, the power bill sitting on the counter—can wait ten minutes. Right now, you need to make three phone calls, and the order matters more than you’d think. Doing them in the wrong sequence, or waiting until tomorrow because you’re too shaken today, can cost you days of benefits or a fee you didn’t need to pay.
Here’s the order, and why.
Call One: File Your Unemployment Claim Today
Most state unemployment systems calculate your benefit start date from the date you file, not the date you lost your job. That means every day you wait is a day of benefits you likely won’t get back. Even if you’re not sure you’ll take another job right away, even if you expect a severance check, even if you feel like you should “have it together” before you call—file today.
You can typically file online or by phone through your state’s unemployment or workforce agency. If the online system is slow or crashes (it happens, especially right after regional layoffs), keep trying and also call the phone line. Write down the time and date you first attempted to file, in case you need to prove you tried early.
A few things that trip people up on this call:
- Severance and unemployment can interact. Depending on your state and how your severance is structured (lump sum versus continued salary), it may delay when your unemployment payments start. Ask the claims agent directly how your specific severance will be treated—don’t guess.
- “Laid off” and “fired” are not the same on the form. Be accurate about why your job ended. If your employer contests the claim, you’ll want your account of events to match what you told the agency on day one.
- There’s usually a waiting period before the first payment lands. Ask the agent what to expect for your state, and mark that date on your calendar so you’re not blindsided.
If you get stuck—password won’t reset, system says your employer hasn’t reported the layoff yet, anything—don’t just wait quietly. Call the state agency’s helpline and ask them to walk you through it. This is the one call where persistence today pays literal dollars later.
Call Two: Your Landlord or Mortgage Servicer
This call feels harder than the unemployment one, but it works the same way: the earlier you make it, the more room you have. Landlords and mortgage servicers deal with job loss constantly. What they don’t deal with well is silence—a tenant or borrower who goes quiet and then misses a payment with no warning.
If you rent, call your landlord or property manager and say plainly that you were laid off today, that you intend to keep paying, and that you want to talk about options before anything is due. Some landlords can offer a short extension, a partial payment plan, or point you to a local rental assistance program. Ask if there’s a hardship or repayment plan process, and get anything they offer to you in writing, even just a text or email confirming what was said.
If you have a mortgage, call your loan servicer (the company you send payments to, which may not be who you originally borrowed from) and ask specifically about hardship forbearance options. Mortgage servicers generally have structured programs for exactly this situation, but you have to ask for them by name—”forbearance” or “hardship assistance”—rather than just saying you might be late.
A note on what this call is not: it’s not the moment to negotiate legal terms or make promises about court outcomes if things go further. If you’re already holding an eviction notice or a foreclosure warning rather than just anticipating trouble, that’s a more urgent, more specific situation, and it’s worth looking at guidance specific to eviction timelines or talking to a tenant rights organization or housing attorney in your area rather than relying on a general hardship call alone.
Call Three: Your Utility Companies
Utilities are last in this sequence because they typically have the most lead time before anything gets shut off—but that lead time shrinks fast if you ignore it. Call your electric, gas, and water providers (a single call to each, they don’t share information with each other) and tell them you’ve lost your job and want to know what hardship or payment plan options exist.
Many utility companies have formal programs for exactly this circumstance: extended payment plans, temporary rate reductions, or referrals to local assistance funds that pay utility bills directly on your behalf. Some of these programs have limited funding or seasonal shutoff protections that vary by state, so ask specifically what applies to you right now rather than assuming a general answer.
If you already have a shutoff notice in hand rather than just a bill, say so explicitly and ask if there’s an emergency process to pause it while you apply for assistance. Shutoff notices usually have a specific date and specific steps to stop them—read yours carefully and mention that date on the call.
What to Have Ready Before Each Call
Layoffs scramble your thinking, so set yourself up before you dial rather than digging for documents mid-conversation:
- Your Social Security number and driver’s license or state ID number
- Your last employer’s full legal name, address, and your dates of employment
- Recent pay stubs or a final paycheck, if you have one
- Your lease or mortgage account number, and the amount and due date of your next payment
- Your utility account numbers (found on any recent bill)
- A notepad or notes app open to write down names, reference numbers, and anything you’re told—memory is unreliable on a hard day, and reference numbers matter if you need to call back
None of these three calls fixes everything today. What they do is start clocks running—benefit eligibility, hardship review timelines, assistance program deadlines—that only move once you’ve made contact. Make them in this order, write down what each person tells you, and then let yourself catch your breath.
