OT: Joining the ranks . . .

herbivore12 · Post by **herbivore12** » Thu Oct 02, 2003 10:23 am

. . . of the unemployed.

My position at the company I work(ed) for was determined to be "no longer necessary". Some corporate restructuring going on. So on Tuesday, my boss and our HR manager came to the office, asked me to pack up my personal belongings, and told me I'd be paid through Wednesday, and be provided benefits through the end of the month.

Since CA is an at-will employment state, and I had an at-will contract, the employer isn't required to give notice, or provide severance packages (except in certain cases, such as large-scale layoffs, etc.). So I don't really have a safety net to ease the transition. At least my boss and the HR rep had the good grace to be angry at that particular corporate policy. . . Not that it helps much.

I'm trying to look at this as a blessing in disguise (I hope it's not a wolf in sheep's clothing, though!). I'd been looking for a career in a different field anyway, so now I have even more reason to look even harder. The frightening thing is that I *have* been looking, and not having success, in the fields that most interest me. Not a great job market right now, and non-profits are especially suffering.

And all this as my wife has gone part-time to take some prereq classes in preparation for veterinary school, and the attendant thousands of dollars I just sent to pay for those classes (about three grand per class, at the local four-year college). Oy!

Anyway, if anyone has good leads, especially for a management level position in a non-profit arena (environmental policy, for instance), I'm all ears. If you need a freelancer to do some writing for you, too, I've got plenty of time all of a sudden . . . (In fact, a friend who's an editor at Wired may have something for me, but it'd be small and not very remunerative. Which is, of course, better than nothing.)

At least I know I'm in good company (right, Weeks?), knowing as I do so many bright, talented folks who've been out of work for months now. So much money in this area, so few jobs. Sort of odd.

Cross your fingers for me!

--Aaron

JessieK · Post by **JessieK** » Thu Oct 02, 2003 10:28 am

Good luck, Aaron!

Doc Jones · Post by **Doc Jones** » Thu Oct 02, 2003 10:38 am

My father used to tell me if you want to be happy you must be one of three things:

1. YOur own boss

2. Everyone else's boss

3. A professor with tenure

Best of luck Aaron.

Doc

Wombat · Post by **Wombat** » Thu Oct 02, 2003 10:40 am

Aaron, I'm so sorry to hear that and I wish I could do better than cross my fingers for you.

I can't believe the number of talented, clever and, these days, often young people who are finding themselves without jobs and I can't help but think that there must be a fundamental change in the way the economy is structured somewhere in the pipeline. The policies that seem to make so many of the best seem dispensible seem to me to be the product of a system which is no longer conservative or capitalist but managerial, ie, a system designed to line the pockets of managers at the expense of investors, workers and customers alike, not to mention the long term health of the economy, the environment ....

OK, rant over. Even if I'm right in thinking it can't last, we're stuck with it now and that doesn't help you. I just hope the kind of job you are looking for comes along really soon. And, if I hear of anything ... BTW, how flexible are you as regards moving?

Best,
John

TelegramSam · Post by **TelegramSam** » Thu Oct 02, 2003 10:42 am

Wow, that really bites. I'm sorry Aaron.

Hopefully you'll find a position you can live with. All I'll say is don't snub a job just because you don't necissarily think it will be a ton of fun though, you never know what you might end up enjoying, and besides, you can always find something else later when the economy swings back up and there's actually a real job market again. Heck, try something totally ouside your field if it comes up. Best of luck!

The Weekenders · Post by **The Weekenders** » Thu Oct 02, 2003 10:44 am

My sympathies. This state is not a good place to be outta work in now.

And getting laid off with two days notice (my situation after 6 1/2 years emp.) leaves one angry for a LONG time.

Of course you know about Craig's List but KITSList is good too. Will post email addy as soon as I get next one (I keep throwin messages away).
Check out UC Berkeley AND Office of the President at UC Berk. Though they are belt-tightened, your priors might help.

You will discover, from KITS, that there are plenty of marketing jobs (Marketing Managers, Executives, etc) that nobody wants. They make up 80% of KITS jobs. In a bad economy, they must be the folk who are axed regularly and absorb the pain.

PS: Dont forget whistle party Nov 8 in San Pablo. We can drink a toast to an early unpleasant death of the weenies who fired us (kidding, honestly, NOT!!!

)

IDAwHOa · Post by **IDAwHOa** » Thu Oct 02, 2003 10:57 am

Aaron, tough break.

Send me an email with your quals and possible types of possitions. Our company has some openings.

Wombat · Post by **Wombat** » Thu Oct 02, 2003 10:59 am

The Weekenders wrote:My sympathies. This state is not a good place to be outta work in now.
And getting laid off with two days notice (my situation after 6 1/2 years emp.) leaves one angry for a LONG time.
.

Oh no, not you too Weeks. This is bleedin' ridiculous. My sympathies to you too. I can't help thinking that there must be some alternatives just waiting in the wings, but I suppose this is a bad time for new initiatives and what can you do if you don't have the capital?

Jerry Freeman · Post by **Jerry Freeman** » Thu Oct 02, 2003 11:01 am

Aaron,

I'm very sorry. This is tough.

Please hang in there. You'll pull through one way or another, I know. And I expect, at the other end of the ordeal is a better situation that gives you the satisfaction you deserve.

Best wishes,
Jerry

SteveK · Post by **SteveK** » Thu Oct 02, 2003 11:04 am

Wombat wrote:

OK, rant over.

Good rant though. Best of luck to you herbivore. It sounds scary to me.

Steve

antstastegood · Post by **antstastegood** » Thu Oct 02, 2003 11:06 am

dang i'm sorry. IMO this state sucks. I wish you the best.

one word: do not let your days become empty. staying positive, confident, and busy are essential.

make sure you hit all the online search engines and stuff.

herbivore12 · Post by **herbivore12** » Thu Oct 02, 2003 11:13 am

Thanks, everybody, for the well-wishes and support.

Doc: funny thing is, I was everybody else's boss. Well, except for my own boss, who was located in San Diego. The company has decided it'd be cheaper to keep him on and fly him back and forth between each office, spending alternate weeks between two offices, than it would be to keep me on, as well. So there it is.

Wombat wrote: I can't believe the number of talented, clever and, these days, often young people who are finding themselves without jobs and I can't help but think that there must be a fundamental change in the way the economy is structured somewhere in the pipeline. The policies that seem to make so many of the best seem dispensible seem to me to be the product of a system which is no longer conservative or capitalist but managerial, ie, a system designed to line the pockets of managers at the expense of investors, workers and customers alike, not to mention the long term health of the economy, the environment ....

You may be right. Although I somehow managed to work my into a high-level directoral position within my company, I've always felt a bit out of my element in the corporate world. It's always seemed a strange dichotomy to me, the way we clamor so loudly for individual freedoms and rights and so on, but willingly cede those things for a third to a half of our daily lives. We demand the right to elect our leaders, to live where we choose, to behave (mostly) as we choose, believe as we choose, then we go to work for a corporation where we have no real choice in our leadership, our behavior, our actions, our movement; essentially, we revert to an almost feudal system, except instead of land, there's capital, and instead of dukes, we have management. We get enough to live on, while the "excess" we produce goes into the hands of a few.

I'm not saying that I wholly disagree with how corporations work, by the way; after all, I do get to choose my employer (sort of), and we are compensated monetarily for our agreeing to certain modes of thought and behavior. I'mnot sure if they can be managed more effectively in another manner, at least not if we're to make the sort of profits investors demand. I just never have wholly bought into the system as such, so always felt uneasy. That's one of the reasons I've been looking for something new of late.

Too bad my disaffection didn't coincide with a great job market, I guess.

Wombat wrote:I just hope the kind of job you are looking for comes along really soon. And, if I hear of anything ... BTW, how flexible are you as regards moving?

Fairly flexible in regards to moving, with caveats: my wife is currently attending several courses at a local university as refreshers prior to (we hope) beginning vet school in a year or so. Her bio degree is ten years old now, so the dean of admissions at the UC Davis school suggested she take a couple courses now to show her competence and refresh her knowledge. Thus, we'll have to stay at least until this term ends. And since her dream is to become a vet, and I'm determined to help her attain that goal, we're limited to moving to areas where there is a school of veterinary medicine. So we're a bit limited at least for the next few years.

That said, we've often talked about emigrating to Australia one day (not because we dislike America, but because we so loved our time there, and because it's a naturalist's dream continent in many ways. And so uncrowded!). So if you have a juicy lead in Wollongong, I'm all ears! (Sure . . .)

Unemployedly,

Aaron

DCrom · Post by **DCrom** » Thu Oct 02, 2003 11:17 am

Ouch. Ouch. Ouch.

I was laid off at the beginning of June, but I'd known it was coming (my employer was slowly sliding towards bankrupcy), so at least I didn't have that sick feeling that comes from being blindsided. Even though legal, that kind of "pack and leave NOW" policy hurts.

I was lucky - I was already interviewing and found another job (one that I'm happy with) and only missed a couple of paychecks, but it was both luck (I happened to have some hard-to-find skills in a small specialty) and connections (a lot of people I know already worked here). But I've got members of my former team still looking, even though they're good people with solid references.

Wish I could do more than offer sympathy and encouragement.

Best wishes,
Dana

Bloomfield · Post by **Bloomfield** » Thu Oct 02, 2003 11:19 am

Aaron, good luck! Best wishes for your job hunt. I think you have great credentials and the right attitude, so I am confident that you won't be out there too long.

Best,

lddulcimer · Post by **lddulcimer** » Thu Oct 02, 2003 11:19 am

Aaron -

So sorry to hear that. I was in that exact position a little over a year ago - downsized without notice. We were supposed to get severance (about three months worth for me ) - but the company conveniently filed bankruptcy right after the layoff so they didn't have to pay it. It really really sucks.

Stay positive (that is very hard) and try (somehow) to enjoy the "free time" while looking for something new. The only upside of my layoff was that it happened at the beginning of summer so I got to spend a lot of time with my kids while they were out of school. It was very cool, but hard to just relax and enjoy it.

Be prepared to deal with the anger that comes along afterward - it is pretty intense. I really hadn't anticipated it and it almost crippled me for a while. In some ways, I am still dealing with it.

Best wishes for finding a new job quickly that turns out to be the best job you ever had! You will be in my prayers.