MetaChat - Emptied my desk into boxes and was escorted out of the building today.

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03 November 2008

Emptied my desk into boxes and was escorted out of the building today. →[More:]I was on a vacation day today doing canvasing and got a call from my manager who told me that the company was laying off 1/3 of the staff and that I was one of the unlucky. I had to go in and get my separation package and box up all my books, say good-bye to the people who were still there and get walked out to my car.

They gutted the company, there's not much left of the engineering staff, they got rid of some of the most amazingly smart people that I've ever worked with. I'm not sure how they expect to produce any future versions of the product. I'm doubly bummed, first for myself and second for the company, which I thought had some pretty cool technology.

I'll be too busy tomorrow with election day to focus on this stuff but Wednesday, I'll have to deal with unemployment, COBRA, 401K stuff and figuring out some kind of budget to keep us going for a while. Bleh.

post by: octothorpe at: 22:42 | 42 comments

oh damn, octothorpe, I'm so sorry. *hugs*

posted by scody 03 November | 22:44

(((octothorpe)))

They did it by phone? Lousy bastards.

posted by gomichild 03 November | 22:45

Oh sh*t, octothorpe. That's awful. I'm so so sorry.

posted by jrossi4r 03 November | 22:49

My manager didn't want to do it over the phone but I was out of the office and they didn't want me to find out third-hand.

posted by octothorpe 03 November | 22:52

Oh, no, that's terrible. Scary, and terrible. Hugs.

posted by typewriter 03 November | 22:57

(((octothorpe)))

I've been through the COBRA thing -- it's expensive, and, to make matters worse, if your payment is even a second late, you'll be dropped, no questions asked. And the forms that come to you in the mail are generally photocopied things that don't look at all professional or legit.

Take care, and very best of luck to you.

posted by treepour 03 November | 22:58

Sorry dear :-(

posted by ThePinkSuperhero 03 November | 23:02

Look into getting high-deductible health insurance through your insurance agent. I got some of that from State Farm in the 90s when I was laid off and it was far more affordable than I would have guessed. We actually didn't use it even once, but we knew we were covered in the event of something major.

I was laid off 4 times in 5 years in the early 90s, another era of shitty economy. All I can say is to look for jobs, then look some more. Something will come your way. It will all work out; you have to believe that.

Out of those four layoffs, the first was a layoff of 3500 people in ONE DAY. I got hired by a different division of the company that laid me off but got laid off again. The second layoff ended before it began because I saw it coming and got a job through answering an ad in the newspaper, then I got two jobs through head hunters. I eventually went back to the company that first laid me off (kind of- same place physically, but they had been sold to a different corporation) and have been here 11+ years.

Nothing is certain though, and as I've been reading about people losing their jobs this time around, I'm starting to get that old familiar, uncomfortable feeling. I hope you find something soon, and I hope this whole damned economy pulls out of the doldrums and everyone that wants a job can find work. At least we'll be done with trickle-down economics soon.

posted by Doohickie 03 November | 23:10

My wife just said that she's able to add me to her insurance so I don't have deal with COBRA, I wasn't sure that she could add me before the end of the year. So that's a relief but I'm not really looking forward to the job search.

posted by octothorpe 03 November | 23:19

Oh man that sucks. So sorry octo.

posted by arse_hat 03 November | 23:20

Happy to hear about the insurance.

posted by arse_hat 03 November | 23:32

:( i'm so sorry. i hope there's good news for all of us tomorrow at least.

posted by eatdonuts 03 November | 23:51

Good on the insurance, cobra is a beast.

*Hug* good luck.

posted by kellydamnit 04 November | 00:12

My best friend at work just got severed, and it sucks. I work for a big company, and I didn't see her much, but the place definitely seems emptier and more soulless without her there. Job hunting sucks, I know, so good luck to you octothorpe. Hope you find something good fast!

posted by eekacat 04 November | 00:13

Good luck with the job search! hella wuffles.

posted by dismas 04 November | 00:13

That sucks, octothorpe, majorly. Good news about the insurance, at least.

posted by rainbaby 04 November | 00:16

I am so, so sorry.

My brother is working for a dying biotech in San Francisco, and they have gutted their staff from 60+ to 10. He's still there, but a huge ball of nervousness. He just keeps hoping to be there when/if the company is bought out and he gets a nice big severance. I wouldn't be surprised if this whole thing has given him ulcers.

posted by rhapsodie 04 November | 00:18

Damn. Good luck with whatever bigger & better things the future holds.

posted by goshling 04 November | 00:50

That is really poopy! Good luck on the job search. I'm right there with ya.

posted by Specklet 04 November | 04:13

*hugs octothorpe*

posted by taz 04 November | 05:28

Thank for the support, bunnies. I'm starting election day work at 6:15 AM and won't be done until 8:00 PM so I won't have much time to stew today. Hopefully, I can recover from a hangover on Wednesday, greet the new morning in America and start the job search.

There is a small high-tech community here in the 'burgh and since it is small, I have connections almost everywhere. I have 141 Linked-in connections, almost all local, so at least I have lots of places to look. If I'm still unemployed in a couple of months, I'll feel different, but right now I'm pretty optimistic.

posted by octothorpe 04 November | 05:42

Hang in there, octothorpe. Hang in there. It's good that you have connections, work them. But you already know that. I'm sorry...glad you got health insurance, though.

posted by Stewriffic 04 November | 07:08

Oh damn, I am so sorry to hear this, octothorpe.

posted by BoringPostcards 04 November | 07:35

Oh this is such bad news. I've been there and it sucks like hell. So sorry to hear it happened to you. Scary stuff, and it makes your heart drop.

Many many many hugs to you and yours.

posted by mightshould 04 November | 07:47

Aw, octo, I'm sorry. Hang in there.

posted by chewatadistance 04 November | 08:41

I'm so sorry, octo. Glad to hear about the health insurance, though. ((octothorpe))

posted by elizard 04 November | 08:47

Oh, GOD. What a shock. I'm sorry - hope you have a good new path open up soon, soon soon.

posted by Miko 04 November | 09:33

That sucks so hard. *huggles*

posted by sperose 04 November | 09:46

Oh noes octo. :-( Terrible news.

It sounds like you have some good options, and are covered for the time being insurance wise. Not sure if that makes it suck any less right now.

posted by -t 04 November | 10:16

If only we could collect the newly loosened brain power for good AND profit.

Here's to good news soon.

posted by ethylene 04 November | 11:09

Oh, wow. I wonder if you're from the same company as another friend of mine in W. PA. Know a Chris BeHanna?

posted by Eideteker 04 November | 11:59

Sorry to hear it Octo, best of luck.

posted by Slack-a-gogo 04 November | 12:23

I'm sorry to hear it, octo, and I'm wishing you the best.

posted by box 04 November | 12:27

That's rotten; I hope it's just a short break from work before you find something new.

posted by theora55 04 November | 13:22

(((octothorpe)))

posted by deborah 04 November | 13:40

Hey, thanks all again for your words. I'll work this out. As Mr. Lennon said, "life is what happens when you're busy making other plans."

posted by octothorpe 04 November | 13:50

Stupid economy. Good luck from here on out.

::hugs::

posted by casarkos 04 November | 15:17

*wuffles*

Good luck, and keep those spirits up! I don't know how... are you into baby bunnies?

posted by TrishaLynn 04 November | 15:35

Oh man, octothorpe, I'm so sorry.

The new people, whoever they turn out to be, will be so lucky to get you. In the meantime, thank goodness your insurance is covered.

Take care.

posted by tangerine 04 November | 16:25

I am so sorry to hear about this! It sucks, but at least you're covered by your wife's insurance. I wish you luck in your future endeavors!

posted by redvixen 04 November | 17:11

I'm so sorry to hear this. Hang in there, octothorpe.

posted by halonine 04 November | 19:09

octothorpe,

Very sorry to hear this. I hope you made some progress sorting through things today.

posted by lukemeister 05 November | 20:52

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