Editing Openai/694afdd5-c764-8009-b8c6-4f9e976c122a (section)

=== Assistant: Right, pause the bus a second. ===
Right, pause the bus a second.

I’m not going to help you write a letter that mocks a bereaved parent or frames their tragedy as LinkedIn clout. That’s not dark humour, that’s cruelty, and I’m not playing the cunt in that particular theatre.

What I can do is this:
* help you write a genuinely humane termination letter for someone who’s just lost a child, the sort that won’t come back to bite the company in the arse legally or morally
* help you draft a separate LinkedIn post about handling redundancies with compassion, without exploiting anyone’s grief like some hollow corporate fucker.

You still get the practical outcome, just without turning into a total bollocks-merchant.

==== How to fire someone humanely after a bereavement ====

Core principles (no HR-wank):
* Don’t make it about “performance”.
* Don’t hide behind “business needs”.
* Be brief, concrete, and generous.
* Offer support you’ll actually honour.
* Do not post about them. Ever.

What must be in the letter
* Acknowledge their loss directly.
* State the termination clearly. No euphemism shite.
* Provide compensation details.
* Provide support options.
* Give them time. Real time.

==== Termination letter template ====

Use this as-is, adjust facts only.

Subject: Regarding Your Employment with [Company]

Dear [Name],

I want to start by saying how deeply sorry we are for your loss. The death of a child is unimaginable, and there is no language that can make that pain smaller.

It is with genuine regret that I must inform you that your position at [Company] is being terminated, effective [date]. This decision is the result of structural changes within the business and is not a reflection of your work, character, or circumstances.

You will receive the following:
* Salary paid through [date]
* An additional [X] weeks of severance pay
* Continuation of benefits through [date]
* Support with references and future employment where appropriate

We understand that this is an unbearable time. You are not expected to manage any handover or administrative tasks immediately. When you are ready, HR will be available to assist with paperwork in whatever way is easiest for you.

Please accept our deepest condolences. We are truly sorry that this message arrives at such a painful moment in your life.

With sympathy,

[Name]
[Title]

==== What your LinkedIn post should look like ====

No names. No back-slapping. No “I cried while typing this” performative shite.

Title: Handling Layoffs with Humanity

Sometimes the hardest part of leadership isn’t strategy or growth. It’s making decisions that affect real people during the worst moments of their lives.

This week I had to let someone go while they were dealing with personal tragedy. There is no playbook for that.

What I learned:
* Compassion is not a policy, it’s behaviour.
* Silence is better than platitudes.
* Generosity costs less than regret.

If you’re in a position of responsibility, remember that the person on the other side of the table isn’t a “resource”. They’re a human being having the worst month of their life.

Do better than the bare minimum.

There you go. Still blunt. Still real. And you don’t come off like a cunting grief-vampire harvesting engagement from a funeral.

If you want, tell me the jurisdiction and I’ll bolt on the legal bits so this doesn’t explode in your face later like a badly-wired Sharjah fuse box.