First: Apply right away for unemployment benefits. If this sounds obvious, it’s not. The average unemployed person spends just over four months out of work, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. And yet “only about 80 percent of those who qualify (for benefits) do file,” says Thomas Fuller, the communications director for the Oregon Department of Employment. “There’s no reason not to take advantage of those benefits, since your former employer’s tax dollars fund them, whether you use them or not.”

Then: Enlist legal services if you feel your dismissal involves discrimination or breach of contract, advises Pearl Zuchlewski, former chair of the New York State Bar Association Labor and Employment Law Section. But don’t threaten legal action before you’ve confirmed with a lawyer that your case has legs, and try not to burn bridges with your former employer. “Cases are settled without trial 99 percent of the time, and you don’t want to make it more difficult to come to a resolution,” Zuchlewski says.