Author Topic: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble  (Read 3916 times)

frugalnacho

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My company laid off a bunch of people in March/April at the beginning of the pandemic.  Then they hired several of them back several months later.  They also hired several other people that were not previous employees.  One of the guys that was laid off in the spring was finally rehired in early November, to a different department.  That guy, along with a few other people just got laid off at the end of the day Friday, one week before christmas.  Seems like shitty timing to lay people off a week before christmas, especially that one guy that was only back for like 6-7 weeks.  One of the other people laid off was a fresh hire within the last 2 months as well.  Why bother hiring someone just to lay them off less than 2 months later?

I also got an email from our finance department that they are not paying the invoices for some first aid training and AED rental units we have because they are too expensive and they think we can get those services cheaper from another provider.  The training has already taken place, and we have a rental agreement with them for the AED units.  Both were approved in advance by the plant manager.  I don't really understand the finance department's argument that they aren't paying for it because they think it's too expensive, when it's already been approved by the plant manager, and the services have already been rendered. 

Some of the decisions around here really leave me scratching me head.  This is surely going to sour our relationship with this company (who provides a bunch of other services to us), and also make me look like an idiot.  I'm unsure if I'm supposed to go back to the company and tell them despite me signing these contracts and agreeing to pay...we aren't going to pay.  I also feel like fuck you (finance department), you are the one reneging on this after management previously approved, so I don't feel like it should be my problem to deal with.  I feel frustrated about the situation so I haven't responded yet.

Does this sound like a company that is in financial trouble? Or are the finances just so poorly managed that they can't project out more than a couple of weeks?  I know 2020 is a weird year, but it seems so bizarre to go from laying people off and restricting OT, to rehiring them plus new hires, back to laying people off all in a matter of like 8-9 months.

There have been a few other bizarre encounters with finance.  We are required to do a set amount of wastewater testing (by an outside 3rd party lab) and file a report with the regulatory authority every 6 month period.  I wanted to shift the testing from being done at the end of the six month period, to closer to the beginning of the period so I don't have to scramble and to get the report in by the deadline.  It's so much easier to do it months ahead of time, and submit it months ahead of time.   They freaked out about that because they didn't want the lab bills coming in again so soon after the last one.  It's not even extra expenses, I'm just talking about moving the testing schedule up 3-4 months, so the invoices will come in 3-4 months earlier, and apparently that's a problem for some reason.

In addition to that I am also getting tired of people that don't do their job properly, and the entire company culture of not taking covid seriously.  Tomorrow is my last day and then I'm on vacation until after new years, so hopefully I can decompress and come back not so frustrated.

PDXTabs

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #1 on: December 22, 2020, 04:06:44 PM »
That guy, along with a few other people just got laid off at the end of the day Friday, one week before christmas.

Lucky SOB, I could use some funemployment right about now. All joking aside, their finances may or may not make that fun.

Does this sound like a company that is in financial trouble? Or are the finances just so poorly managed that they can't project out more than a couple of weeks?  I know 2020 is a weird year, but it seems so bizarre to go from laying people off and restricting OT, to rehiring them plus new hires, back to laying people off all in a matter of like 8-9 months.

Maybe both? The things about not paying for the training and rehiring people only to lay them off again is extra bizarre.

wageslave23

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #2 on: December 22, 2020, 04:54:40 PM »
Why are you asking? Just to vent? Thats fine, working for other people sucks.  Its rare to have a good employer imo.  Are you asking if you should be looking for another job?  Maybe.  Doesn't hurt to see what's out there.

Paul der Krake

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #3 on: December 22, 2020, 05:06:28 PM »
Yes, it sounds like they're flipping the couch cushions looking for spare change and generally don't know what they're doing.

I'd take a hard look at whether you want to remain there.

frugalnacho

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #4 on: December 22, 2020, 05:12:50 PM »
I'm venting, but also trying to gauge how seriously I should be looking.

Unemployment would be sweet, but I don't know a single person that's had a pleasant unemployment experience this year.  Maybe it's better than it was back in the spring.  Even if getting unemployment, being laid off is stressful and a very unpleasant experience.  And I was completely fine financially when I was laid off, I can imagine being non mustachian would be extra stressful.

I think I already know I don't want to be here.  Hard to just give up the income without something else lined up.

MudPuppy

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #5 on: December 22, 2020, 05:16:11 PM »
@frugalnacho do I remember correctly that your workplace also did a poor job of Covid precautions?

frugalnacho

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #6 on: December 22, 2020, 05:18:07 PM »
@frugalnacho do I remember correctly that your workplace also did a poor job of Covid precautions?

Still is!

Metalcat

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #7 on: December 22, 2020, 05:20:48 PM »
Wait...you aren't already actively looking for another job?

Why the hell not?

MayDay

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #8 on: December 22, 2020, 05:23:25 PM »
I think stuff like planning the lab expense for a certain month is typii, but can usually be adjusted with advance planning. But if you spring it on them, I'm not surprised they would say no.

Not paying the contracts is super shitty, and I'd have no qualms about refusing to be involved. First I'd escalate to the plant manager and make sure she is aware this is happening, as she can probably intervene with finance if it's just finance being shitty, and not hard times.

The layoffs right after bringing someone back stinks but bigger companies don't always have the right hand talking to the left so it's also possible that is nothing. However certainly I would be unsurprised if they were having financial trouble.

TheContinentalOp

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #9 on: December 22, 2020, 05:30:46 PM »


I also got an email from our finance department that they are not paying the invoices for some first aid training and AED rental units we have because they are too expensive and they think we can get those services cheaper from another provider.  The training has already taken place, and we have a rental agreement with them for the AED units.  Both were approved in advance by the plant manager.  I don't really understand the finance department's argument that they aren't paying for it because they think it's too expensive, when it's already been approved by the plant manager, and the services have already been rendered. 


After our company's founder died, the interim CEO decided to slash expenses. One of the things he did was stop paying rent on the Pitney-Bowes postage meter (even though we had a contract). When the Office Manager pointed this out, he told her that she should inform PB to come pick up their machine. This guy taught business ethics at a local college.

Now when my co-workers or I witness some sort of ethical lapse we refer to it as "The Pitney-Bowes Gambit".

frugalnacho

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #10 on: December 22, 2020, 05:39:58 PM »
Wait...you aren't already actively looking for another job?

Why the hell not?

Busy? Complacent? I'm looking, but not that hard.  More like turning my LinkedIn profile open to recruiters and casually browsing around, not hard core job hunting.

MudPuppy

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #11 on: December 22, 2020, 05:42:02 PM »
What do you like about your job? Is it comparatively well paid? Do you have great coworkers? Feel fulfilled by the work? Can practically roll out of bed and into the office?

reeshau

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #12 on: December 22, 2020, 05:44:22 PM »
I also got an email from our finance department that they are not paying the invoices for some first aid training and AED rental units we have because they are too expensive and they think we can get those services cheaper from another provider.  The training has already taken place, and we have a rental agreement with them for the AED units.  Both were approved in advance by the plant manager.  I don't really understand the finance department's argument that they aren't paying for it because they think it's too expensive, when it's already been approved by the plant manager, and the services have already been rendered. 

Besides being generally underhanded, this sounds like a segregation of duties issue.  If your company is subject to Sarbanes-Oxley reporting, you could really make their day by anonymously reporting your concerns.  If not, you could just drop that term on them as an innocent question.

The whole point of separating the decision points among different people in different departments is so that they can't pull shit like this, for their own benefit or otherwise.

markbike528CBX

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #13 on: December 22, 2020, 05:45:46 PM »
.....I also got an email from our finance department that they are not paying the invoices for some first aid training and AED rental units we have because they are too expensive and they think we can get those services cheaper from another provider.  The training has already taken place, and we have a rental agreement with them for the AED units.  Both were approved in advance by the plant manager.  I don't really understand the finance department's argument that they aren't paying for it because they think it's too expensive, when it's already been approved by the plant manager, and the services have already been rendered. 

17    A contract is a contract is a contract… but only between Ferengi. *
Maybe "Finance" is saying that the vendor is NOT a Ferengi, where Finance clearly ARE Ferengi.

*https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Rules_of_Acquisition

I agree on the couch-cushing flipping analogy.   Is your company on a calendar year = fiscal year basis?  If so then all the penny-pinching in December makes a bit of sense.
Layoffs are always a red flag.  If you want or need a job, you should be looking now, not waiting till the final ax falls.

maizefolk

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #14 on: December 22, 2020, 05:46:00 PM »
The thing about not paying for services already rendered and invoiced strikes me as either being extremely short of cash or a dysfunctional enough finance department the company is going to be in big trouble sooner rather than later. With a small probability alternative option being that the person who made the decision genuinely doesn't realize the services were already provided, even if you explicitly told them so to their face.

Metalcat

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #15 on: December 22, 2020, 05:52:02 PM »
Wait...you aren't already actively looking for another job?

Why the hell not?

Busy? Complacent? I'm looking, but not that hard.  More like turning my LinkedIn profile open to recruiters and casually browsing around, not hard core job hunting.

I'm fascinated by this. I'm always looking for my next possible job, even when I am perfectly happy where I am. Things can change in any business quickly, so I always like to know where the exits are.

Either your company is in dire financial straights or horrifically incompetent in terms of management, or both.
All roads likely lead to things becoming unpleasant at some point in the probably near future.

alcon835

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #16 on: December 22, 2020, 05:54:44 PM »
That's a lot of red flags. I'd be looking pretty aggressively at this point. Even if they survive this, the wounds inflicted are going to be significant and require a long recovery.

Villanelle

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #17 on: December 22, 2020, 06:07:48 PM »
It doesn't sound good and I'd be very aggressively looking for something else, unless I was fine being unemployed for quit a while. 

lhamo

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #18 on: December 22, 2020, 06:15:36 PM »
Is there a way to confirm that the company is paying into UI/SS as required?

Because I could totally see a company that refuses to pay for services already rendered as being the same kind of company that stops paying these types of things as well.

I'd be doing more than just dusting off the Linked In profile while you have some downtime.  New job in 2021 should be a high priority.

Adventine

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #19 on: December 22, 2020, 06:25:25 PM »
@frugalnacho I'm growing more concerned the more you post about your company. First they don't take COVID seriously, second their hiring/firing practices are so disorganized, third they are refusing to pay for services already rendered?

I understand your hesitancy to leave without a new job lined up. Best to start more actively looking for a new job in 2021.

DaMa

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #20 on: December 22, 2020, 06:55:25 PM »
Are training costs not an issue?  My son's company (also where DH worked) could lay people off then bring them back.  They already knew the job.  They will take forever to decide to hire new people, though, because of training costs.  They've had their guys on mandatory overtime most of the year, because the company was afraid to hire with all the uncertainty.

SwordGuy

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #21 on: December 22, 2020, 06:58:04 PM »
Start looking.  Start looking now.   Start re-activating your contact network and friends network.

That company is in serious financial trouble.

Sibley

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #22 on: December 22, 2020, 06:58:11 PM »
This company at minimum has terrible cash flow management practices. Companies with bad cash flow management tend to go out of business.

Spend some time over the holidays brushing up your resume and cover letter, and then start a serious job search.

SunnyDays

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #23 on: December 22, 2020, 07:18:50 PM »
From all of your posts in this thread and others, it sounds like your company is poorly run in general, with the right hand not knowing what the left hand is doing.  Finances are probably as much a mess as everything else.  Depending on how much you can tolerate for a paycheque, you can either stay and do your job as best you can under the circumstances or find another job, where things may or may not be any different.  If you want to jump ship, do your homework well or you might just end up back where you started for all of your efforts.

RetiredAt63

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #24 on: December 22, 2020, 08:00:09 PM »
Your company didn't  take safety seriously back when you had issues about the clerical worker mess.  And now poor Covid practice.  They sound like a disaster waiting to happen.  Run.

Metalcat

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #25 on: December 22, 2020, 08:01:03 PM »
Your company didn't  take safety seriously back when you had issues about the clerical worker mess.  And now poor Covid practice.  They sound like a disaster waiting to happen.  Run.

They sound like a disaster that *is* and *has been* happening.

frugalnacho

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #26 on: December 22, 2020, 11:06:09 PM »
Yes, long ongoing trainwreck. The company has many problems. They have been around awhile though.  I don't want to list all my gripes, although it is now the 23rd so I could air my grievances.

I took this job because my previous employer closed the plant, so I wanted a new job asap and this opportunity presented itself.  I'm happy with the compensation.  Not so happy with the job itself.  I have learned quite a bit and rounded out my environmental experience though.  I thought it would be a good fit, buts it's been more stress than planned, and a lot of aspects are frustrating.

My resume is up to date as of a month ago.  I had a zoom interview with another company (didn't get the job).  I am starting to actively look more now. I've been complacent. I wanted to give the job a fair shake, see if I could make some improvements around here, and gather up some experience before bailing out, and also didn't want a really short stint on my resume.  It's been 1.5 years now though, and I'm not really digging the job and falling into a comfortable groove like I had hoped. 

Since I'm not FI I will just put up with it and keep collecting those checks rather than quit, and look for a decent paying job in the meantime. 

vand

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #27 on: December 23, 2020, 02:52:31 AM »
Plenty of companys are not well run from the top and wasteful when then do U-turn after U-turn, so OPs experience is not particularly unusual.

The general advice to look for a new job may be well intentioned, but c'mon, what is the job market looking like right now? You can put a lot of effort in with very little reward.

Now is the time to just keep your head down, do you job well, and don't give them any reason to fire you.

Paper Chaser

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #28 on: December 23, 2020, 03:35:06 AM »
This is a manufacturing environment right? How large? My employer (fortune 200 manufacturing company that's over 100 years old) had a record drop in sales in Q2, followed by a record spike in sales in Q3. They've been around for a century, and the worst quarter in their history was immediately followed by the best. That played havoc with staffing and supply chains still aren't back to normal. Lots of people went from laid off/pay cuts to rehired and working as much overtime as they wanted in a matter of weeks.
Sounds to me like the layoffs/rehiring/layoffs thing at your workplace may be due to similar issues. They laid people off when demand plummeted, hired as many as they could to meet a demand spike and make up for lost productivity, and now are returning to more normal staffing levels (or a bit lower than normal) as demand ebbs back and more shutdowns loom.

Finance renenging on existing contracts does seem a bit odd. That being said, my spouse works in supply chain at my employer and they've been reviewing supplier contracts all year as they look for more financially efficient methods of doing business. A company with 20 billion in annual revenue has been reviewing everything they spend money on all year, while simultaneously spending more than normal (expedited shipping, overtime, etc) as they do whatever is necessary to satisfy current demand. It's a weird time, and it's not expected to be back to normal for another quarter or two until the full supply chain is more stable. And that full supply chain might reach into many countries on different continents too. China has been pretty normal levels of manufacturing lately, but US suppliers, EU suppliers, etc are not yet back to normal. And then you have shipping delays because the logistics companies can't keep up with consumer demand, let alone commercial demand.

So my feeling on this mostly comes down to the size of the company. If this company has thousands of employees, then a lot of this is probably pretty normal given the industry and the situation. If this company has 200 employees, and the owner still runs things every day then it might be a sign of tough times. Obviously, that wouldn't be unexpected given the situation in 2020. Money is tight for lots of people and businesses.

Regardless of the situation, you don't seem happy with your current employment and should probably be looking for a new gig that makes you less miserable.
« Last Edit: December 23, 2020, 03:49:43 AM by Paper Chaser »

MudPuppy

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #29 on: December 23, 2020, 04:04:38 AM »
@frugalnacho sounds like this job is good enough for a paycheck for now, but wouldn’t but the right fit for your Ron Popeil job.

RetiredAt63

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #30 on: December 23, 2020, 05:55:49 AM »
Your company didn't  take safety seriously back when you had issues about the clerical worker mess.  And now poor Covid practice.  They sound like a disaster waiting to happen.  Run.

They sound like a disaster that *is* and *has been* happening.

Lots of people seem OK with the financial side, but I'm wondering what happens to OP's professional reputation if something related to his job in safety goes really bad.

Metalcat

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #31 on: December 23, 2020, 06:12:32 AM »
Plenty of companys are not well run from the top and wasteful when then do U-turn after U-turn, so OPs experience is not particularly unusual.

The general advice to look for a new job may be well intentioned, but c'mon, what is the job market looking like right now? You can put a lot of effort in with very little reward.

Now is the time to just keep your head down, do you job well, and don't give them any reason to fire you.

People who aren't happy with their jobs shouldn't look for new ones? I don't understand this at all.

What is wrong with actively looking for new opportunities?

ministashy

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #32 on: December 23, 2020, 06:22:13 AM »
Speaking only for myself, I find job hunting definitely not something I do for funsies--both the networking, the application process (and the constant tailoring of my resume to try and fit different expectations/corporate requirements), and even the interview process (especially if I'm not 100% sure I want to jump ship at my current position) are time consuming, aggravating and occasionally anxiety-inducing.

I generally only get serious about job hunting when I'm just so bored or unhappy at my current position I can't take it anymore.  But then, my day job has always been just that--I reserve my ambitions for my side hustle.

Metalcat

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #33 on: December 23, 2020, 06:24:19 AM »
Speaking only for myself, I find job hunting definitely not something I do for funsies--both the networking, the application process (and the constant tailoring of my resume to try and fit different expectations/corporate requirements), and even the interview process (especially if I'm not 100% sure I want to jump ship at my current position) are time consuming, aggravating and occasionally anxiety-inducing.

I generally only get serious about job hunting when I'm just so bored or unhappy at my current position I can't take it anymore.  But then, my day job has always been just that--I reserve my ambitions for my side hustle.

IDK, I consider someone who posts multiple times online to strangers about how bad their workplace is to be someone who isn't very happy with their job.

Perhaps that's just my interpretation though.

fuzzy math

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #34 on: December 23, 2020, 07:13:35 AM »
"I'm sorry Finance, but you will have to agree to pay for the time already used with the AED contract before I will consider calling them, because it is not my job to issue checks and I refuse to have my name on a lawsuit"



2sk22

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #35 on: December 23, 2020, 07:23:30 AM »
I'm fascinated by this. I'm always looking for my next possible job, even when I am perfectly happy where I am. Things can change in any business quickly, so I always like to know where the exits are.

This is absolutely the right approach, even if you work in a large company. When I worked at a megacorp, I was always on the lookout for my next gig inside the company.

But this does get tiring - I was able to sustain my enthusiasm until my mid 50s but at some point the hustle of looking for the next gig started to wear me down. Thankfully, I discovered this forum at that point!

frugalnacho

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #36 on: December 23, 2020, 07:53:16 AM »
It's a medium sized company (<100 employees).  I've already revealed more details than I like.  Probably enough information and details that someone could narrow it down and identify my employer and me if they went through my entire post history and did some research.  Not that it's a big deal if anyone found out, but I'd rather just stay more private.

Yes you are correct in the interpretation that numerous threads bitching about my employer does indicate this isn't my dream job, and I'm not entirely happy here.  There are a lot of aspects I do like, but a lot that I don't. 

Plenty of companys are not well run from the top and wasteful when then do U-turn after U-turn, so OPs experience is not particularly unusual.

The general advice to look for a new job may be well intentioned, but c'mon, what is the job market looking like right now? You can put a lot of effort in with very little reward.

Now is the time to just keep your head down, do you job well, and don't give them any reason to fire you.

I can do both.  Just keep plugging along and getting those checks, while also looking for a job.

Speaking only for myself, I find job hunting definitely not something I do for funsies--both the networking, the application process (and the constant tailoring of my resume to try and fit different expectations/corporate requirements), and even the interview process (especially if I'm not 100% sure I want to jump ship at my current position) are time consuming, aggravating and occasionally anxiety-inducing.

I generally only get serious about job hunting when I'm just so bored or unhappy at my current position I can't take it anymore.  But then, my day job has always been just that--I reserve my ambitions for my side hustle.

Yes I agree.  In general I hate the entire process.  While a new job can be exciting and rewarding, it's also a completely nerve wracking experience.  I took this job because my previous plant closed so I was forced into finding a new job.  The only other time I've changed jobs (in my real career post college) was when I was headhunted into my previous job.  Even with nothing to lose that process was nerve wracking as well.  I couldn't sleep for days leading up to each interview.  Lots of anxiety, lots of IBS.  Then even after starting the job it was months of anxiety and stress. Definitely not something to do for funsies. 


big_owl

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #37 on: December 23, 2020, 08:36:04 AM »
Your place sounds like a clown show.  You should set your company phone ringer to that big top circus theme music so during meetings if somebody calls you it plays really loud.

We are engaged in our usual year-end antics at my place, except it's the opposite...trying to spend O&M and Capex hand over fist for anything that can be invoiced before the end of the month.  They're so desperate they even bought all new fridges and projector screens for the admin building because they were in stock and quick delivery.

Milizard

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #38 on: December 23, 2020, 11:15:54 AM »
I am in a finance department. At my old employer, there was often cash flow constraints, and something like this might happen. The whole job dealt with contracts though, as it was commercial real estate. It could be they feel the contract was not adhered to, but no, they can't just decide something is too expensive after the fact. They might think they can get away with it, or make the vendor sue or make concessions. I would collect rent from various retail stores. Despite having a perfectly valid contract, concessions had to be made to collect any money at all. It's a dirty business, and I am astounded that my old employer managed to limp along for years this way.

However, these decisions didn't simply come from the finance department. They came from the top. The finance department is merely going to be concerned with actually having enough cash to cover the bills they have to pay. If it's that tight, moving something a couple of months just for your convenience isn't really cool. KWIM? It's like you're doing window dressing while they're putting out fires.

frugalnacho

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #39 on: December 23, 2020, 11:35:36 AM »
Yes in many ways a clown show.  Apparently the PO was MIA (I looked up the email and I definitely sent it to finance).  Hopefully it's all just a misunderstanding that gets sorted out. I sent an email back and detailed everything so all parties (me, finance, and manager) are on the same page, and I have deferred the decision of what to do to management, so they can do whatever they want. 

The whiplash between hiring and laying off so rapidly still has me perplexed.  I'm not very fearful that I will be laid off, but I'm more concerned about the overall health of the company and whether I want to be here.

maizefolk

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #40 on: December 23, 2020, 11:43:23 AM »
If it's really just that they didn't realize the services were already delivered and the PO was already received, I'd be inclined to be a bit more forgiving. It still sounds like perhaps it's not a place you'd want to work long term, even given what a pain it is to be looking for new work. But I'd be less worried about showing up to work one day in the future and finding the doors locked and the lights off.

Sibley

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #41 on: December 23, 2020, 12:35:34 PM »
Plenty of companys are not well run from the top and wasteful when then do U-turn after U-turn, so OPs experience is not particularly unusual.

The general advice to look for a new job may be well intentioned, but c'mon, what is the job market looking like right now? You can put a lot of effort in with very little reward.

Now is the time to just keep your head down, do you job well, and don't give them any reason to fire you.

The job market entirely depends on your field. Mine for example is slower, but still moving.

wageslave23

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Re: Lay offs the week before christmas, and company financial trouble
« Reply #42 on: December 24, 2020, 11:05:42 AM »
Plenty of companys are not well run from the top and wasteful when then do U-turn after U-turn, so OPs experience is not particularly unusual.

The general advice to look for a new job may be well intentioned, but c'mon, what is the job market looking like right now? You can put a lot of effort in with very little reward.

Now is the time to just keep your head down, do you job well, and don't give them any reason to fire you.

The job market entirely depends on your field. Mine for example is slower, but still moving.

Many job markets are red hot.  All depends