At least I still have a job

[SpacemanSpiff]

For now. Until December 31 of this year. I get to look for a new job for the first time in over 16 years. They told us about it on Thursday afternoon.

Our parent company has decided to move all accounting functions to Omaha, into a recently purchased company. The move isn't totally surprising, other than the locale and timing; they've been slowly moving out our functions piecemeal to the corporate HQ out in California over the last two years, and forced out our Controller a few months ago (she was in her early 70s and ready to retire anyway, but I think she would have liked to stay on a couple of more years). In fact, there are a lot of folks they had hired just this year in CA that are in the same boat.

The good news, at least for us in accounting, is that we are being kept to handle the handoff A couple of IT folks were basically told Thursday was their last day.

And they're giving us a decent enough buyout. Two week's pay plus a week for each year of service, along with accrued vacation through December (that'll be 21 weeks total for me), plus a 13 week bonus if I stay through December 31 to help with the transition. So, that'll give me cash into mid-August of next year. They've also lined up a group to help us with our job searches -- how to write resumes, interviews, etc; Mrs. Spiff used the same group about 6 years ago when her company moved elsewhere, and speaks highly of them.

Of course, the first thing I need to do is get my resume together. Mrs. Spiff said "don't you have one?" and I replied "the last time I needed a resume was two wives, six residences, and five PCs ago, and was on WordPerfect."

Send some good vibes my way. I'm sure I'll come through this ok, but I've has some times in my past where I had a bad case of "terminal unemployment," and that will occasionally give me some anxiety attacks.

Thanks for listening.

[MarleysGh0st]

I'm sorry, Spiff. Good luck.

[mrkelley23]

Ouch. I feel for you, SPiff. Best of luck on the job search, but don't forget to take a couple of weeks to clear your head and reorient.

[jaybee]

What is this - some kind of balance of employment in the universe. G just gets his situation under control and now it moves to you.

At least you have a year to plan and make changes. You could also collect on your unemployment insurance as the severance package is not considered salary. That could stretch the timeline out a little bit more.

Sorry it happened but maybe it will turn into an opportunity that is better for you.

[silverscreenselect]

Sorry to hear this; I'm well aware of just how bad this can be, but they do seem to be helping you as much as they can, and you'll have a good financial cushion for several months.

I wouldn't wait until December 31; at our age opportunities can be few and far between and the perfect job might show up in October, not February. Start looking now.

[BackInTex]

Sorry to hear this Spiff? What are you IT or accounting? What part of the country are you in?

[silverscreenselect]

At least you have a year to plan and make changes. You could also collect on your unemployment insurance as the severance package is not considered salary. That could stretch the timeline out a little bit more.

That varies from state to state. In many states, severance pay is considered pay for the purposes of calculating unemployment eligibility but if you receive it in a lump sum, it only means that there's a one week delay in your collecting benefits. If they pay you weekly or in installments, that can throw things off for you.

[gsabc]

Of course, the first thing I need to do is get my resume together. Mrs. Spiff said "don't you have one?" and I replied "the last time I needed a resume was two wives, six residences, and five PCs ago, and was on WordPerfect."

Ouch. Was in this situation myself years ago, and GW was facing it recently. It could be worse, especially on the severance and length of notice for you. Vibes going your way for swift re-employment in 2015.

How it could be worse on the resume: GW has held one job at the same company for 34 years, and really didn't even have much of an interview for it. She saw five people in sequence. The last guy came in, sat down and said "Well, as far as I'm concerned, you're hired. So what do you want to talk about?" If her project client hadn't decided to renew the contract after dithering for two months, she has NO resume and effectively never has.

Best wishes for you and the family, and best of luck with the situation.

[Bob78164]

I, too, have been where you are, though without the severance. It's not comfortable. Good luck, and let us know if there's anything we can do. --Bob

[kayrharris]

Good luck on your job search and future employment.

kay

[ghostjmf]

Good luck. Good Grief. But Good Luck.

[SportsFan68]

Good luck, Spiff.

[christie1111]

That sucks.

As someone who has been there, sending you positive vibes for a new, better job.

The place I got laid off from has gotten even smaller while my current job has been great.

It doesn't always work out that way but I certainly hope it works out for you as it did for me.

We have been told there is going to be some shifting around of people here but all indications are that it is just realigning and no losses.

[Beebs52]

Best of luck Spiff. You'll be fine, but the journey can be quite annoying at times-we've been there and done that a couple of times. Congrats on the severance package, though. That's unique nowadays (we had one back in the 90's when Kodak's division tanked and Jeff was cast into the employment pool after 25 years) but marvelous if you get it.

[SpacemanSpiff]

BackinTx - I'm an accountant, located in Central Virginia.

Best of luck Spiff. You'll be fine, but the journey can be quite annoying at times-we've been there and done that a couple of times. Congrats on the severance package, though. That's unique nowadays (we had one back in the 90's when Kodak's division tanked and Jeff was cast into the employment pool after 25 years) but marvelous if you get it.

Yes, I can't complain about that. The company that we used to be would have done that, and I had no reason to think the current ownership group would be any different. They seem like an honorable bunch, not a bunch of hatchet men.

Of course, then I see stories like this in the local paper, which made for a bit of a sleepless night. But it motivates me to get this the job search rolling instead of waiting until December.

http://www.timesdispatch.com/business/e ... c1ff9.html

[Bob Juch]

Good luck! You should be able to find something fairly quickly. Both Capital One and Virginia Power had open jobs for my skills a couple of months ago so they're hiring IT people at least.

[mellytu74]

Spiffy --

It bites but I am glad you've got the December cushion.

I would recommend beginning the search anyway. SSS is correct - the opportunity(ies) could pop up at any time.

As someone who has gone through a couple of life incarnations, I would be more than happy to work with you on a new resume. Let me know.

[SpacemanSpiff]

Thanks Melly. I might just take you up on that. I'm trying to get the resume together this week. The following two weeks are on vacation (long planned and paid for; the only downer is that it would interrupt anything done this week, but I'll be ready for when I come back).

I did stumble onto an interesting ad in the local paper on Friday, which I'm going to check on come Monday. A local private college is advertising for an assistant controller (sort of de facto what I've been doing; I've been a controller before in smaller businesses). They may not want me because I've not worked in that "industry" before. However.... our "owner emeritus", who still comes into the office on a daily basis, is on the board of that college, so I'll talk to him about it.

And to show I haven't lost my sense of humor, there was this exchange in the office this week:

Boss: Hey guys, can I see you all in my office ?
Me: HELL NO! That's what you said last week, and look what happened!

It took five minutes for all of us to stop laughing.