Dear J.T. & Dale: My company recently came to us and explained that they could either complete a round of layoffs or have us all take a reduction in pay. We opted to take the pay cut, but I’m questioning it. Now EVERYONE is struggling to pay their bills. Don’t you think it would have made more sense to just let a group of people go and have them find new jobs? — Mackenzie

Dale: I’ve had executives tell me that employees have been suggesting pay cuts as a way to forestall layoffs. And it makes sense as “job insurance” — if your take-home is $4,000 a month and you take a 5 percent hit, that’s about $200 a month for “insurance” against being dropped into an awful labor market.

J.T.: I understand your frustration, Mackenzie, but I think your co-workers made the right vote. By keeping all the staff, your company will be poised to rebound. If management lets people go, when the time comes to ramp up output, the company would have to invest significant dollars in recruiting and training staff. So you’re helping insure more than your job — you’re helping to ensure that the company will successfully bounce back.

Dale: So we’re concluding that your company has chosen the better of two bad options. What troubles me is when companies consider only that dreary pair. The better way is to ask employees for their help/involvement in increasing revenues and cutting costs. There are wonderful stories of the recession unleashing a new spirit of cooperation where employees are, for instance, taking over training from outside vendors or adding new business specialties. Instead of just asking employees to share the pain, some wise executives are asking employees to share ideas. Now, THOSE are the companies that are going to thrive after the recession.

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Jeanine “J.T.” Tanner O’Donnell is a professional development specialist and founder of CAREEREALISM.com. Dale Dauten’s latest book is “(Great) Employees Only: How Gifted Bosses Hire and De-Hire Their Way to Success” (John Wiley & Sons). Please visit them at www.jtanddale.com, where you can send questions via e-mail, or write to them in care of King Features Syndicate, 300 W. 57th St, 15th Floor, New York, NY 10019.

© 2009 by King Features Syndicate, Inc.