"The vision and mission of Northvolt, combined with my involvement, meant that I really had a piece of my heart invested in the company; this feels like a bereavement."
Week One: Tuesday.
It's around 10:00, and I am looking through everything I can to find some information to take to my team. We are due to start a new shift after four days off this afternoon, and I want to be as prepared as possible for all the questions that may arise.
During the previous day, it had been announced that 1,500 people would be laid off from the factory and that emails would be sent out during the evening and night. I have woken up to nothing. Who will be working this afternoon? How will the production run? How many questions will there be, and how much will I have to support those who are left? Will I even keep my job? When will I find out?
Then I get a message from the production director to have a ‘quick call’. It's over. I am laid off from Northvolt.
I had been working with Northvolt since 2020 and was part of the first group from Skellefteå to train as a machine operator. I have built myself up from manufacturing associate to block manager. I have seen the factory in Skellefteå start as a flat wasteland being built up to what it is now; I have been a part of that journey from the start, recruiting, training, developing, and helping to create what is now the formation and ageing sector.
The vision and mission of Northvolt, combined with my involvement, meant that I really had a piece of my heart invested in the company; this feels like a bereavement.
Wednesday.
Acceptance. Accept that I was no longer part of that journey. Accept that it was not something that I did or didn't do that meant I was one of those laid off.
At first, my perspective was very insular, but as time went on, and I heard from colleagues, spoke to colleagues at the offboarding and at the various initiatives in the city, it became clear that it was not a personal reflection of me as a person or as a professional but simply an inevitable result of a bankruptcy.
"It is clear that there are now many people looking for work, and this caused a slight panic, a feeling that I cannot waste any time, otherwise I might miss out on something."
The next step was to start being proactive straight away. It is clear that there are now many people looking for work, and this caused a slight panic, a feeling that I cannot waste any time, otherwise I might miss out on something.
I used contacts I had made at Northvolt to get a meeting at a recruitment agency, and I headed to the Great Northern, where there is a Northvolt drop-in support service.
These meetings and visits gave me a clearer picture of the direction and the actions I should be taking. I would love to say that they were all positive and gave me a real boost of confidence, but I would be lying.
In short, there are several factors that stand out. The recruitment agencies told me that the job market in Skellefteå is already struggling because many other companies in the city that were growing due to Northvolt no longer need staff. One agency said that their expansion plans had been put on hold, their local staff gone, and the central office was handling the region.
At the support service, the first question from all the representatives was always, "Do you have a work visa?"
I am lucky enough to have come to Sweden before Brexit, and so I have EU rights, but I get the feeling that if you are here on a visa, not many people are interested in helping.
This stirs up guilty emotions. I genuinely feel bad for those in that situation, and as someone who sold everything to move his family to another country, I can understand the stress and worry this uncertainty brings. But on the other hand, in a competitive job market, losing a large portion of the playing field works to my advantage. This is an uncomfortable truth and one I am still finding hard to rationalise in my head.
"I genuinely feel bad for those in that situation, and as someone who sold everything to move his family to another country, I can understand the stress and worry this uncertainty brings," says Ben.
Friday.
What am I going to do with my time? I am lucky that I have a three-month wage guarantee, so I have more time than others to work things out. I do not want to waste this time, and so, as well as finding a new job, I want to work on myself, something I have not had the time or energy to do for a long time.
So, the plan for next week is set: create some kind of strategy for job searching and personal improvements, leave Northvolt in the past, and stop thinking about how production is going, who is left working there, what the gossip is around a new buyer, etc.
And finally, reflect on the positives and try to enjoy this time I have at home with my family.