Not looking for sympathy but?

[CJC]

How many of you, family have been effected by this recession?

After 14 years, I just found out this Monday that not only my job but ALL of manufacturing in the company I work for is being shut down. My last day will be Sept. 30th, something to look forward to. All of manufacturing to be outsourced and we get to train the company building our systems how to do it.

Again, not looking for sympathy, I've always had good work ethics and have done whatever I've had to. Just wondering how the economy has effected you and what you think about the bailouts, stimulus package.

Me, to much $$$$$$ going to the wrong places and don't think it will help those who really need it. I feel sorry for my kid.

CJC

[Flareside]

Hey man, I definitely feel for you. I used to work for the Health Insurance carrier CIGNA. Same thing happened to me. My job was eliminated and in order to get a severance package, I had to agree to stay and train someone to do my job. Definitely sucks,but I did use the time to also hit up all the managers there to write me letters of recommendation. I put together a nice folder (check out the stuff Staples has to put resume's in) with my cover letter on one side, along with many letters of rec. (from numerous managers) and my resume on the other. It makes an impressive package if your letters have the signature and title of the managers on them.
I could possibly help you with resumes and cover letters if you wanted to talk via pm's.

My wifes company just laid off last week. She survived this cut, but later in the spring is the next round and its not looking good. Im pretty worried, if she loses her job, we definitely could be in trouble.
I too think the stimulus package may not help very much. Sounds like too many places where money is allocated to senseless areas

[JonV]

I know how that goes. I left a nice job I had over in Queens back in 06 to come take a job I felt had a bright future, and just last May, the company practically went under. I left Brothers Roofing Supply to be the Engineering Administrator for The Solar Center out of Denville.

Everything started out ok, then I had that small heart attack back in Jan 07. The company squandered a great group of money, opening up locations based on where State run programs offered incentive plans to home owners, without thinking of the salary and costs of these locations. Then the blessed wonderful thoughful caring State of NJ decided to end the rebate program home owners had, and change it to a performance based system. All the while, adding in a company to inspect the completed jobs to pay the money to the installing company. The new system got all fouled up and the State hadn't paid a dime of 1.5 million worth of instillations we completed for over 8 months. Combine that with the company President basically taking company funds, 80% of the company got let go last May, and my slot was one they couldn't afford to keep.

What kills me on this one though, the Vice President of the company told me to my face, it was simply a matter of money, they just didn't have, yet they kept a dimwitted lesser skilled Customer Service bimbo that I had to teach how to use her computer when I was just starting the job myself, who makes more money then I did. I so love being in NJ.

All in all, this stimulus stuff, it's a joke. It's just to make people think the goverment is doing something, while the money you get might make a payment or 2 on a mortgage or whatever, the real thing we need are jobs to stay put and not be outsourced like what happend here with CJC. Everyone looks at the President for answers, and call me stupid, retarded or dumb, but it seems to me, we as Americans bark up the wrong tree. The President isn't much more then a figurehead who speaks and signs bills, but these bills come from our Congress people. If we are going to start pointing fingers and holding people accountable, I still can't fathom why we blast our President, when it's our congress people writing up these bills they think are in our best interest. God bless us all.

[DJRansome]

This has happened to me four times during my career, usually due to my company being acquired. It may happen to me again in 2009. Each time I ended up with a better position than I had, after much anxiety. If you are employed, keep your skills sharp and have a plan for what your next step will be, you never know when it will happen to you. If you are unemployed, keep a positive attitude and spend 8 hours daily networking and job hunting.

The dilemma I haven't figured a way around is offshoring. The salaries are SO much lower offshore that even if it takes 4 times as many people to get the job done, it's still more cost effective. And, the people offshore have better educations than we do. One woman told me that kids applying to college in India view the best US universities like MIT as safety schools...not a great education but easy to get accepted. How can we compete with THAT?

[Afreakin]

Real Bumber man. I feel for you, good luck in the job search.

[joe_jaskot]

This has happened to me four times during my career, usually due to my company being acquired. It may happen to me again in 2009. Each time I ended up with a better position than I had, after much anxiety. If you are employed, keep your skills sharp and have a plan for what your next step will be, you never know when it will happen to you. If you are unemployed, keep a positive attitude and spend 8 hours daily networking and job hunting.

The dilemma I haven't figured a way around is offshoring. The salaries are SO much lower offshore that even if it takes 4 times as many people to get the job done, it's still more cost effective. And, the people offshore have better educations than we do. One woman told me that kids applying to college in India view the best US universities like MIT as safety schools...not a great education but easy to get accepted. How can we compete with THAT?

If the schools are so great overseas, how come much of the world's technology comes from the United
States?

Yes, our country's economy is hurting. So are the economies of the rest of the world. Much of our economic problems of today were caused by greed. Speculators invested in real estate and in oil futures. When the price of oil went to $150+ a barrel, that caused the prices of all goods and services to increase in price. When everything went up in price and salaries remained unchanged the snowball started to roll. People could no longer afford to keep up with their mortgage payments, leading to foreclosures. The price of housing started to come down. Investors in real estate walked away from their properties when home values were lower than the mortgaged amount. Banks were left holding properties that no one wanted. Credit started getting tight. Small businesses couldn't borrow money for daily operations, leading to layoffs. The news media kept reporting the bad news. People panicked and began pulling their money out of stocks and commodities. Stock prices declines. The oil market collapsed. The assets of most people declined in value. People bought less. The economy came to a screeching halt. Have we reached the bottom? I don't believe so. Most local, county, and state governments are going to be hurting for money. Sales tax revenues are down. Corporate taxes are down. Personal income tax revenue will be down. Government layoffs are sooon to come. Maybe that's a good thing. Government is getting too big. Can the government bail us out? Only time will tell. The government doesn't produce anything. It only prints money. Who will pay for the bail out? You, me, our children, our grandchildren, etc. . Start spending that money you saved for a rainy day.

[Lostlilkidd]

sorry buddy

[TOMMYN3D]

From november of 2008 untill the end of January I lost a little over 6,000 dollars from my 401k. Im not in my retireing age but to loose that much money in 3months make me angry. thats alot of money to loose in a short time.last friday i called VANGUARD and told them to cancel my contribution from my weekly pay going into my 401k.The only way i can close my account (pay the taxes and extra penalties) would be if i was no longer employed by the company.
I rather pay penalties and taxed heavily than watch all my money roll down to nothing. I could move my money around ,butt the market is doing so bad what stocks and bonds are even worth moving it to...

[DJRansome]

Joe I agree with you on government bailouts, LOL. But I'm afraid the US is going to have to work hard to keep their lead in technology.

TOMMYN3D, ride it out or put it in the money market!

[nick a]

We just had to tell 2 of out co-workers that Friday will be their last day. They were 'contractors' (through something like a technical temp agency) but one had been here for 9 years and the other for 7. One's husband was laid off from his job last week--so the timeing is really BAD for them & their children!

Our company is using old fashioned scare tactics to beat down the employees yet again. We make IV bags--hardly something that people purchase with their 'disposable income'. "Doc., can I have this heart surgery without all the bells~n~whistles like medications?" Downturns in the economy have very little effect on our business (maybe a few less boob-jobs or tummy-tucks), but lay-offs are ongoing, raises are history.....what you won't hear about tho is the top tier execs bending over and taking it like men!

Have you guys seen that video "SponsoranExecutive"? It's a hilarious/sad semi-spoof based on the ads like Sally Struthers does on latenight TV.

"....he has to walk 50! feet to his limo...weekends in Aruba are in jeopardy.....the expensive mistress may have to go.......BUT, for ONLY $3700 a day you can help him save his life style! Presented by .....the US Dept. of Treasury........

If it wasn't so true, it'd be more funny!

[Sharpfish]

Unfortunitely I am already S. O. L.. I worked for DHL Express and was eliminated in October of '08. I original drove for Airborne Express. Then we were aquired by DHL Worldwide. The Germans had purchased at least a dozen N. American (US and Canadian) companies over the last 4 years. In their infinite wisdom they gave all of the upper management of Airborne the proverbial 'Golden Parachute' buying them out for 5 or 10 million dollars each. However, none of the Germans knew how to run the U.S. market. It does not operate like the rest of the world economies. So, after 4 years and a slew are devasting mistakes they decided that the US market is not lucrative. They have now all but shut down operations in the US. We had 205 drivers in Pittsburgh. They have cut down to the top 13 seniority men. That was 13 years gone. Now I just have to adjust on the fly. I feel the pain. I am already there. Wally

[Zippo]

IMHO this pork, err spending, err stimulus package (:erm:)will do nada but make more problems. I can't imagine my great great grandkids will still be paying for this POS long after i'm dead. A lot of jobs are being lost because a few crooks on Wally St (and a lot more in DC)decided they needed even more millions than they had already. If it were a bill supporting working people i'd have NO problem with it, but it's mainly a spending bill which again IMHO will do little to create jobs in the numbers needed to help.If it works i'll admit i was wrong, if it doesn't look out Congress! YOU WILL BE REPLACED, and fast. Thank you for reading my rant. :disgust: And good luck to all who are out of work, my best wishes to you and keep the faith, there's someting out there i'm sure that doesn't cost 789 billion $$$. :)

[JonV]

AMEN Nick!! You are my hero right now! Greed in our country is just sickening and those that might have some greed in them hide behind the total capitalism aspect. I'd have big time respect for major companies or even small ones where the big wigs took pay cuts to free up money to keep jobs. I doubt that's going to happen. You get that mansion and boats and trips all over just like you said, and heaven forbid they have to get a slightly smaller home and their child can't go to Harvard or Princeton. What a tragedy! What about the other 200 million families in American where going to a school like that wasn't even a consideration due to the cost? Is it that much of a set back someone can't attend such an elite school? I am having visions of Latrell Sprewell here again.

It also kills me I still see these commercials about a child in some other nation is going go without something, and we have this same freaking problem right here. Drugs or whatever aside, how are we as a society going to talk about how great our country is, when we raise up all these millions of dollars to help out other nations when these people that raise the money don't want to take a walk through NYC in the middle of winter. I know a good place all those dollars can go to help our own people right here at home! If we want to help other nations, a noble thing, at least first fix your own home up.

[CJC]

I think you all have been correct so far and can appreciate all the pain we're all going thru. It's amazing that not ONE of you have supported Obama and our governments spending bills.

It really got me yesterday when they came together on this bill and decided to cut the working persons tax rebate from $500- for the single person to $400- and $1000- to $800- for the working family. Socialism, I hope there will be enough of us who stick together to get these BUMs out of office before to mutch damage is done if it hasn't gone to far already.

All the best, love you man!!!

CJC

[joe_jaskot]

Rather than bailout all these companies and put together an economic stimulus plan, the government should have bought stock in all American companies. This would have prevented the stock market collapse. People's 401K plans would have retained their value. The government could have sold the stocks when the prices went up, costing the taxpayer $0 dollars. As the stock prices increased, investors would pay the government taxes on their gains. A win win situation.

[Bev N]

I have never, will never support any of this crap nor Barry who only knows how to spend money faster than a drunken politician in a whore house.

If your in debt up to your ears to you spend more money and make more debt? NO! So why did the government think that was a good idea? How about cutting spending, downsizing government and eliminating waste.


As someone else said there is one thing and one thing only responsible for the current economic state we are in. GREED! Wall Street got greedy, Washington got greedy, we all got greedy. The more we had the more we demanded. Remember the days where you saved to buy a luxury? The cost of living has skyrocketd while wages have not.

Take for instance the company my husband works for. In the 25 years he has been there they have taken virtually everything they could. No paid holidays, no christmas bonus this year without even the decency of a heads up, max 2 weeks vacation, no sick days, no personal days, no cost of living raise since 2007 and most recently all overtime has been cut. Yet this company boasts about the millions they make every year at the Christmas party. They hit one billion this year. They are adding on a two story office addition to the building in this division. But the one that burns my butt beyond it all. This week we got a nice little DVD produced by the company to highlight their 85 years in business. Now...how did that benefit the company. I'm sending it back. You can bethca those execs didn't lose their Chritmas bonus, vacations, sick days and luxury company cars. GREED!


Where's the change? It's coming...3 years and 11 months to go!

[Zippo]

A smart old man(no idea who it was) once said "If you see yourself digging a hole to deep to get out of STOP DIGGING!" Now we've dug another 789billion $$ hole. Good going there Barry.* Insert extreme sarcasm here*:bandit:

[nick a]

Let's not forget that the pre-Obama administration was the one that signed over the first wave (what was it? about $750/800 Billion?) I'd seriously hate it if all this pain was masked by old fashioned repub/demo back & forth bickering.

Very insightful solution Joe! Too bad we didn't go that way--I hear that we're supposed to expect (hope for?) about 60 cents on the dollar from the money sent out to the bankers/wall street last fall.

[Bev N]

Oh no Nick. I wasn't happy with the first one either. It's all bad and getting worse in my opinion.

[Zippo]

Exactly! We started digging the hole with the 1st crappy bailout and it just continues. Read what's in this one though and you'll get the idea what this really is. ;) P O R K