A layoff notice from General Motors starts several time-sensitive clocks that most employees never knew existed. GM announced on August 14, 2026 that it's cutting 350 jobs at its Lansing, Michigan facility. If you're affected, the decisions you make in the next few days and weeks carry real financial weight. Here's what to do, in deadline order.

  • File for Michigan unemployment the same day your job ends, benefits are not retroactive.
  • If you're 40 or older, you have 45 days to review your severance agreement before signing.
  • Elect COBRA or Marketplace coverage within 60 days of losing your GM health insurance.
  • Check whether GM withheld 22% federal tax on your severance and whether you owe estimated taxes by September 15, 2026.
  • Decide what to do with your 401(k) before GM distributes it, a direct rollover avoids the 60-day scramble.

What happened

General Motors announced on August 14, 2026 that it's laying off approximately 350 employees at its Lansing, Michigan plant. The company hasn't disclosed which specific roles are affected or what severance terms it's offering. That's not unusual for GM announcements at this stage. Details typically come in the days following the initial notice.1

Should you file for unemployment right now?

Yes. File the same day your employment ends, or as close to it as possible. Michigan unemployment benefits are not retroactive. The week you wait to file is a week you don't get paid.

In Michigan, unemployment is administered by the Unemployment Insurance Agency (UIA). File online at michigan.gov/UIA or by phone at 1-866-500-0017. You'll need your Social Security number, your GM employment history (dates, wages, reason for separation), and a valid ID. Michigan uses MiLogin for identity verification, so set that up before you start the application if you haven't already.

Michigan has a one-week waiting period, meaning your first week of eligibility doesn't pay out. That's standard in Michigan. The waiting week only applies once per benefit year, so file now and serve it immediately rather than waiting.

One thing to know if you're receiving severance: Michigan may consider certain severance payments as wages and delay the start of your benefit payments accordingly. The UIA will ask about severance on your application. Answer honestly. If your severance is structured as a lump sum, it's treated differently than if it's paid out weekly. The UIA will make that determination based on how GM reports it.

You can find Michigan's current benefit calculation rules, including the weekly benefit cap, at the UIA website directly. The Layoff HQ post-layoff checklist has the current link to the UIA calculator.

What should you do about your severance agreement?

Read it before you sign it. That sounds obvious, but it's the step most people skip under stress.

If you're 40 or older, federal law gives you specific protections under the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act (OWBPA). OWBPA is the part of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act that governs severance waivers for older employees. It requires GM to give you enough time to actually review the agreement.

Because this is a group layoff affecting multiple employees, if you're 40 or older, GM must give you at least 45 days to review the severance agreement before you sign.2 That's not a suggestion. It's a federal requirement. If GM pressures you to sign faster, that pressure doesn't change your legal right to the full 45 days.

After you sign, you have 7 more days to change your mind and revoke your signature. The agreement isn't final until that 7-day window closes.3 Don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

What to look for when you read it:

GM hasn't publicly disclosed the severance terms for this round of cuts. When you receive your agreement, take the full time you're entitled to. If the terms feel unclear, a one-hour consultation with an employment attorney is worth the cost before you sign something irrevocable.

What should you do about health insurance?

Health insurance is the most time-sensitive decision most people face after a layoff, and it comes with two separate 60-day windows running at the same time.

COBRA is a federal program that lets you continue your GM health coverage after you leave, as long as you pay the full premium yourself. The definition of the COBRA election window: it's 60 days from your coverage loss date or from the date you receive your COBRA election notice, whichever is later.4 You don't have to decide immediately. But you do need to act within that 60 days.

The average COBRA premium for individual coverage in 2026 is approximately $703 per month.5 That includes the full cost of your coverage (what you were paying plus what GM was contributing) plus a 2% administrative fee. It's expensive. But COBRA has one advantage: retroactive election. If you elect COBRA on day 55 and you had a hospital visit on day 12, your coverage applies retroactively. You'll owe the back premiums, but the claim is covered.

Your other option is the Marketplace. Losing employer-sponsored coverage triggers a Special Enrollment Period (SEP) of 60 days.6 That means you can enroll in a Marketplace plan outside the normal open enrollment window. Depending on your income during the transition period, you may qualify for premium tax credits that make a Marketplace plan significantly cheaper than COBRA.

The smart move: use the COBRA window strategically. Don't elect COBRA on day one unless you have an immediate medical need. Use the 60 days to price Marketplace options at healthcare.gov, then decide. You can elect COBRA retroactively right up until day 60 if something comes up medically during that window.

If you have dependents on your GM plan, their coverage situation is the same. COBRA covers them too, at the family premium rate.

What about the taxes on your severance?

Severance is taxable income. The IRS treats it as supplemental wages, which means it gets withheld at the federal supplemental wage withholding rate of 22% on the first $1 million.7 That 22% comes out before you see the check.

Here's the problem: 22% flat withholding may not cover your actual marginal tax rate. If your combined 2026 income puts you in a higher bracket, you'll owe the difference at tax time. That surprise bill can be avoided by making estimated tax payments now.

The Q3 2026 estimated tax payment deadline is September 15, 2026.8 If your severance was paid in the third quarter (July through September) and you're short on withholding, that's your next checkpoint. Use IRS Form 1040-ES to calculate whether you owe.

One more thing on severance and taxes: if your severance is paid out in installments rather than a lump sum, the withholding on each payment still goes out at 22%. But your overall picture for the year depends on your total income, deductions, and whether you have other income sources. Run the numbers before the September deadline, not in April.

What happens to your 401(k)?

Your vested 401(k) balance belongs to you when you leave GM. You have four options.

Leave it in the GM plan. This is fine short-term. GM's plan may have institutional investment options you can't access elsewhere. But you'll eventually need to move it when you start a new job or reach retirement age.

Roll it to a traditional IRA. A direct rollover (GM sends the money directly to your IRA custodian) has no tax consequences and no deadline pressure. This is usually the cleanest option.

Roll it to a new employer's plan. If you start a new job and the new plan accepts rollovers, you can move the money there. Same direct rollover process applies.

Take the cash distribution. This is rarely the right move. If GM distributes the funds directly to you rather than to another plan or IRA, 20% is withheld for federal taxes automatically. You then have 60 days to roll the full amount (including the withheld 20%, which you'd have to cover out of pocket) into a qualified account to avoid it being treated as a taxable distribution.9 If you miss the 60-day window, the full amount is taxable income, and if you're under 59 and a half, you'll also owe a 10% early withdrawal penalty.

The direct rollover avoids all of that. Request it from GM's plan administrator before you leave if you know where you're rolling to. If you're not sure yet, leave it in the GM plan for now and move it when you have a destination.

Deadlines and rules described here reflect federal law and general state guidelines as of the article date.

The Layoff Guide

The deadlines above apply whether or not you are tracking them. The Layoff Guide from Layoff HQ is a 33-page field guide that covers all twelve post-layoff deadline events in the order they arrive: unemployment, the severance review and revocation windows, COBRA and the Marketplace, your FSA, your equity window, your 401(k), and your taxes. Each event comes with timed checkpoints, the decision math, and the one mistake that costs people the most, plus a fill-in worksheet that turns your last day worked into your complete personal deadline calendar. One-time purchase. No subscription. Instant download, with a 14-day full refund if it is not useful.

Get the Layoff Guide or build your free Decision Calendar.

Written by the Layoff HQ research team. Sources verified against DOL, EEOC, IRS, and state workforce agency primary documentation.

  1. WLNS News, "General Motors laying off 350 Lansing employees," August 2026. wlns.com
  2. EEOC, Age Discrimination in Employment Act, OWBPA group termination review window: 45 days. eeoc.gov
  3. EEOC, OWBPA 7-day revocation right after signing. eeoc.gov
  4. U.S. Department of Labor, COBRA election window: 60 days. dol.gov
  5. KFF, Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance, average COBRA individual premium 2026: approximately $703/month. kff.org
  6. HealthCare.gov, Special Enrollment Period triggered by loss of employer coverage: 60 days. healthcare.gov
  7. IRS Publication 15, federal supplemental wage withholding rate: 22%. irs.gov/publications/p15
  8. IRS, Q3 2026 estimated tax payment due: September 15, 2026. irs.gov
  9. IRS, 60-day indirect rollover rule. irs.gov