By Jacob Zinkula
Publication Date: 2026-06-04 09:05:00
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Fatema Ali, a job seeker in her 30s who lives in Texas. She previously worked for IBM as a project manager before being laid off in 2024. The following has been edited for length and clarity.
In early 2024, I began to worry that my time at IBM could be coming to an end.
I was a delivery project manager based in the Dallas area and had been working remotely since joining IBM in 2018. That January, IBM announced that all US managers would be required to report to an office or client location at least three days a week or risk losing their jobs. There was an office about 15 minutes from my home, and I started going in regularly.
In February, my manager started warning me that broader layoffs could be on the horizon. By the time I was laid off in April, I wasn’t completely surprised.
More than two years later, I’m still looking for full-time work.
