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Data Engineer Laid Off Within a Month After Leaving Five-Year Job

The episode signals risk in switching to startups by showing rapid budget cuts can undo a long-held role.

Overview

  • The tech worker left a large Indian employer after about five years to join a startup and says the new company asked them to resign within a month because client and budget changes left them without a project.
  • The person posted on the DevelopersIndia subreddit on Monday, Aug 17, 2026, asking whether to seek rehire at their former employer or continue job hunting and expressing concern about how a very short stint will look to recruiters.
  • Commenters advised that returning can be possible when relationships remain strong and shared similar stories of short stints being smoothed over, but they also urged the poster to pursue other openings first.
  • India Today reported the Reddit handle Less_Sir1465 and said the worker received roughly three months' pay as severance, while Hindustan Times cautioned that the account is user-generated and has not been independently verified.
  • Coverage places the case inside a larger, difficult tech hiring climate this year, noting widespread cuts tracked by layoffs.fyi and falling active job listings that make quick moves to startups especially risky for experienced engineers.