A layoff fundamentally changed how I perceive work

These leave-on-the-day layoffs are really strange to me. Unless there was a bankruptcy or something, I'd most likely be convinced by management to stay my entire period of notice (3 months) because the company would need to PAY me 100% my salary for that period anyway. If they thought I was a risk to keep around, or they had no work for me at all, then they could just give me paid leave for 3 months. But more likely I'd be doing handovers and documentation and whatnot for the 3 months. But like, closing down accounts immediately? Do companies really think any laid off employee is an immediate security risk to the extent they need to lock them out as soon as they lay them off?

> Do companies really think any laid off employee is an immediate security risk to the extent they need to lock them out as soon as they lay them off?

Yes. There are a few case (a handful across the world every decade) where a former employee has done bad things in retaliation. Yes extremely rare, but it happens.

If I was hellbent on doing that, I’d likely pull it off anyway. It seems like a massive trouble to avoid something quite rare.

Not getting in the door or havng access to systems limits the damage you can do. You can still do much but it won't be near as bad.

Yeah. But again, it basically means you have no handover of anything, and in many (most?) places around the world you are still required to pay employees for a long period after notice. So you have an opportunity for handover that you are paying for, but that you aren't using.

The risk to the business from just dropping things without proper handover shouldn't be ignored in comparison to the risk of an employer going crazy after being notified their last day is 90 days ahead.