Company restructurings, mergers and rationalisations are all aspects of the modern working life and are, all too often, a subtext for staff redundancies.
Christians are not free from these troubles. The threat or reality of redundancy is often accompanied by negative emotions of fear, anxiety and anger.
Reacting to job insecurity
So how does the Christian Workplace Group (CWG) react to a situation in which an organisation or department is struggling with issues of job insecurity and low staff morale? All too often the reaction is to go to ground and enter a self-preservation mind-set, thinking, ‘I’m too consumed with working to keep my job’.
Oasis amid uncertainty
Often the strongest witness of the CWG is through difficult times such as these. In one company, an office closure affecting 400 staff was followed by a merger and several waves of redundancies took place. It would be reasonable to think this level of disruption would have had a negative impact on the CWG, but the opposite was the case. The CWG acted as an oasis amongst the uncertainties of working life and many who had no previous contact with Christianity started to join for support and prayer. Although many group members were lost as a result of redundancies, a new group emerged from this legacy and last year held a very well- attended carol service. The group continues to meet and pray and, having ‘come through the other side’, are all stronger for it. It is through difficult circumstances we can be the light in dark places.
