Currently, there’s an average of 6,000 people leaving their jobs each month, whether due to quitting or due to layoffs, with the latter being the predominant problem around the nation. With so many industries and companies participating in large layoffs and overall company restructurings as if it were a fad, so many people are feeling the intensity of the insecurity of their jobs.  

While you may not have control over your job as to whether you’ll have one tomorrow or in a year, you can have some control over your own security of your situation. It is important to maintain a strong emergency fund. It is suggested that any emergency fund (untouched until needed) should contain the minimum worth of three to six months of financial need. However, the bigger you can build a financial emergency fund, in case of any type of emergency (whether job loss or what have you), it is important to build up the fund as much as possible and to never touch the account until necessary.

As a last resort, consider opening up a home-equity line of credit or apply for a low-rate credit card that you hope you will never have to use. It’s a lot harder to do either of those things if you're already unemployed, so do it now, but only with the intention to use at a later time when necessary.  Do not utilize the “emergency” credit until you need it, if you ever need it.  

In regards to credit, make sure that you are not only making your minimal monthly payments on your credit cards and other debt, but if possible, pay off as much of your debt as possible now. The less debt you have when an emergency arises (such as a job layoff for you or your spouse), the less you’ll have to worry about with credit companies later.

Whether or not your job is secure, make sure to know your company’s policies in regards to health insurance and other benefits. By law, it is required that your company must keep you on its health plan for 18 months after a layoff, although you may have to pay the entire premium. It is also important to inquire to your spouse’s company in regards to joining your spouse in their insurance plan. Many employers consider a spousal layoff to be a life-status event (which means you can switch to their plan immediately), it's not a given and some will let you change plans only during open-enrollment periods.

It is important to prepare yourself in the current moment for an emergency in the future. Do not put off saving money or paying off your debt until a later time. The more you can do now to secure your financial status, the better off you will be in case of a financial emergency in the future.