Ouch! Merry f%$king Christmas. I got laid off!

[john]

Well it looks like after surviving 5 rounds of layoffs I finally got pinched.  As of the Christmas holiday I am laid off  

This is the second year in a row they have done this -as in had a round of layoffs at Christmas.  At least I get a small severance.

This was not unexpected as I figured it was gonna happen last spring (the "old" members probably remember me talking about career change).  So now I have a lot of decisions to make.  I can Persue a job in Sacramento, Milwaukee, stay here and work for a competator or chuck it all and find myself in Phoenix.

No matter what happens with me this place will remain.  With the ebay stuff I am selling and the donations we are solvent for a long time to come no matter what happens to me.  But unless I land a job with similar pay my high speed service may have to go and old dial up (at 28.8 -the best speed I can get here) may have to return  

14 long years at the same job down the toilet.  Oh well :dunno:  I need another beer...

[pantablo]

Sorry to hear about that John. As before, anything I can do to help don't hesitate to ask.

[sacrmento or phoenix!]

[squidscareme]

sorry to hear about that, john. what the hell are they thinking, laying someone off right before the holidays??

[dgyver]

I know your frustration. I lost 2 jobs in the past 2 years due to lay-offs with a loss of income of more than twice what I am making now. I have had to reduce expenses with cut backs of my own...no cable, turned off home phone and have cell phone only (slow a$$ dial up), had to trade in my Durango on a Tacoma, sold my race SV. Now working 2 jobs and back in school part time. Still have 2 motorcycles, a truck and my house...it could be worse.

[JLKasper]

John,

Sorry to hear the news; I have also felt the sting in my life, and didn't have severance to fall back on.  

If you want to take solace in your current condition, you might checkout www.f*&%edcompany.com (use the real letters); it's an eye-opener. There are a lot of good people out there just like you.  I have no idea where the gummint gets their employment numbers.  I think for every twenty jobs like yours that disappear, another Krispy Kreme opens.

I hope you take this calamity as a blessing in disguise, and find yourself back quickly on your feet.

[Turkina]

Ho ho freakin ho
I feel for you man... Hopefully someone appreciates your talents and re-employment is just around the corner!

I just got socked by a $4000+ hospital bill that insurance won't cover... so I'm on the misery boat along with you... All aboard!    :guns:

[Ratzo]

Bummer. Sorry to hear that. I got laid off just before Thanksgiving '88, after ten years. There is no good time to get laid off, but before the holidays really sucks. Hope the severance is decent.

[Blueknyt]

Know,what, after 14 years, #UCK them, feed em some shaZam! from the other side of the street. would seem to me a company having an employee of that many years, has more then jsut time invested into a person. no training video or class will ever compete with years in a slot, laying off such ppl is a loss that cant be messured till its too late. I'm sending good thoughts to you john, run with em mate. Slap em in da peepee place and make em dance.

[JohnNS]

There's always Burger King. You HAVE been practicing that carol, haven't you?  

Just kidding...your employer kinda sounds like mine. They don't see their employees as people, just expenses. There was a guy I worked with who was retiring after 40 years with the company. Know what the company did to thank him? Had a 5 minute meeting with everybody in the cafeteria (who were already there cuz it was break time anyway), shook his hand, said thanks, gave him some cheap-ass piece of "art" they picked up at a kiosk at the mall, and that was it. 40 years..for that  

Anyway, hope things work out ok for you (I'm sure they will).  

John

[vtlion]

that's a bummer dude.  It's never easy having to re-plan your career,... stressful, but sometimes it turns out to work surprisingly to your advantage.  If you survived 5 rounds of layoffs, you must have been doing something right.. you'll land on your feet  

Best of luck with whatever your next great adventure is.  

ps.  if you move to CA or AZ... I'm thinkin' why not the John's GS-USA tour!!!!  Yeah, that's the ticket.  Everybody on the board could give you a "GS's across america" escort to your new place!  

[yamahonkawazuki]

aindadabitch :x , just avoid phoenix   , else you'll end up like wrencher pissed cause someone jacked your ride, btw dial-up sucks im on 28.8, if you've survived 5 rounds of lay-offs, dont think you'll have any trouble

[Wrencher]

Sorry to hear that John. Sounds like you have other options to persue which is always good. If you were not kidding about Phoenix, I would be more than happy to help out if you need anything.

Don't let YamaHon fool you, the crime here isn't THAT bad. Why is been a good 48 hours since we had a vehicle stolen!        

[pantablo]

Why is been a good 48 hours since we had a vehicle stolen!        

That you know of...

[john]

Well I look at it like vtlion does.  This is a golden oportunity to pull up stakes and move OR try to find a better job.

And yes now I can make a few bucks on the side selling parts to my old customers -might be good for 5k a year with very little time invested.

[Cal Price]

That's a real bummer, bad luck, this kind of crap always seems to happen in the "festive" season. There is not much festive spirit amongst my troops, the firm has just announced 600 jobs to go in the new year plus further "efficiency measures based on workstudy" and I think we all know what that means. I realy hope it works out for you, one door opens as one closes....

[kyzee]

Hey John,

As the saying goes "when the going gets tough...." you'll get my drift. Wish you best of luck in your next endeavor.  

[octane]

That sucks man. I've been afraid of this for some time, but like you I've survived. This year I started a business and have been working every waking moment that I'm not at my 9-5 to build it into a viable business that can support me. It's a tough road, but hopefully it will all work out and I'll be more or less in control of my own economic fate. Maybe it's time GSTwin got some paid advertisers. You've certainly got the traffic numbers and you work hard enough doing this that you deserve some income. Especially now.

If you do look to move, Virginia's a nice place! I've been here 8 years. Low cost of living, good job market, nice climate. I'd be happy to help you out any way I can. The local news and community info site is www.hamptonroads.com. You can find job and home info there and I can answer any questions you've got. Good luck!

-Dan

[dmp221]

What happens when you're riding along, feeling secure, cruising along a well-known road,  on a planned route, when all of a sudden you come upon a big "Road closed-detour" sign....
Man, you gots no choice, you make a new plan, find a new road, and you know what...it's just an unplanned adventure; an opportunity that's more interesting along the way, and leads you to something better.
You'll be back on another familiar, secure road soon enough.  For now, enjoy the ride.

[cozy]

Sorry to hear it man.    Hang in there. It's still great that you are able to consider a move . Your plight is indicative of a huge problem in this country and no sector is immune. The NE part of the country seems to be especially hard hit. Eventually we'll all be out of work and living in a science fiction movie like Soylent Green.    But seriously i think our economic model of the future looks alot more like a third world country's as opposed to vice versa. We'll have two political parties - Microsoft and Wal Mart.

[mwdbruno]

John, sory to hear of the misfortune at the expense of someone elses whim...
If you move to Sac, let me know and I'll see what I can do to help you with the transition (I'm only 40 miles from there).
If you are actively hunting new employment, check out AJB.com (americas job bank.com).  It is the largest collection of open jobs in the country.  I just went through a Transition Assistance Program (the get the hell outta the USAF class) and they highly recommended the AJB for job searches.
Good luck to you in the hunt...we'll stand behind ya!

Lane