Job Loss

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DianeA2Z
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Job Loss

Post by DianeA2Z » Wed Apr 30, 2008 2:22 am

Sorry to dump, folks, but I need to do some venting. Yesterday afternoon at 4:15 my husband was laid off from his managerial position with a local franchisee-owned company. No warning. Nothing other than "well, we really appreciate your loyalty to the company and your hard work, but we're not making enough money at this location and we can't afford to keep two managers." So they let my husband, with 35+ years of experience in the industry and 2 years with the company go and kept someone with NO experience in the industry and 3 months with the company. Of course, the manager they kept is best friends w/the guy in charge of hiring...S.O.B. screwed us over big time. They uprooted our lives...we moved here to take over this office. Then we we got here, they changed the rules. And, they wouldn't give us money to fully stock the trucks or fix the broken equipment, yet we were supposed to pull a rabbit out of our a**es and turn the place around. When the owner's father died 3 months after my husband started w/the company it was my husband who held the company together for a month while the 2 sons dealt w/dad's death and discovered that dad wasn't the great businessman everyone thought...big time company debt. My husband landed in ER and hospital 3 times in 6 weeks thanks to that job. Now the bastards just cut him loose. Not to mention the fact that they totally disregarded his contract.

Well, I guess now we have all the time we need to concentrate on building our own business. We'll show them all!

Thanks for letting me vent...really needed it :cry:

Diane
Visit www.MaximizeYourWellness.com
(Ok, a shameless plug). I'm just here to learn how to say No to the S!

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fkwan
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Location: middle of nowhere, Texas

Post by fkwan » Wed Apr 30, 2008 2:39 am

Diane, I'm really, really sorry.

My husband is a 55 year old programmer/chef/nurseryman (gardener). He mostly worked as a programmer. He hasn't worked in 4 years, and he can't even get an interview nowadays. The IT departments where I work are totally incompetent and half the time won't even answer the phone. He can do the job in his sleep.

I'm so upset with the state of the world that .... it's probably why I eat too much, or used to before No S. :cry:

Have you thought of consulting an attorney re: contract?

Hugs,

f

DianeA2Z
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Post by DianeA2Z » Wed Apr 30, 2008 4:29 am

f,
Thank you so much for your concern! It means a lot, believe me. I stayed on program yesterday and today, although I admit to larger dinners the past two nights. We're both trying to keep busy. He's going to unemployment tomorrow to file a claim. He's thinking about either going to the Labor Board, or we may end up consulting a lawyer. The company has owed us $2600 since December and for sure I'm gonna make sure we get that!

My husband will apply at a few places because even if the salary isn't a lot, if there are health benefits, he'll do what he has to. The Container Store and Whole Foods are two companies he's going to apply to. He may not get a managerial position, but that's why we're working to build our business. We can do it from anywhere in the world and I'm working w/a mentor of ours to beef up our internet presence. I keep prospecting as well. At our ages (I'm 59 and he's 53) it isn't gonna be easy to find a job. I'm going to apply at those companies too, and we'll see what happens. He's a master plumber by trade, but he's decided that with his sales background and management experience he'd like to try another field. As long as we can get health benefits...that's the thing I'm most worried about. We were forced to be w/o health and dental insurance for about 4 years. We finally have a good plan w/Kaiser and come the end of May that will end. It really sucks to be older in this country because it doesn't matter what kind of experience you have most companies want young workers.

Well, no sense in wallowing about this. Time to pull up the old boot straps and use whatever resources I have. At least we're not starting "cold" with our business, and the potential is huge. With a network marketing company, age or even education is not an issue. I'm really glad we have the opportunity that we have with Nikken. We have a strong support system and constant training; and since the company has but 1% of the Wellness Care market share, there are lots of potential customers to talk to. Did you know that in this country last year $2 trillion was spent on health/wellness care??? Nikken has been in business since 1973 and is in 40 countries; and the company has no debt..

You might know that the first thing I wanted to do after the "knife" came out of my gut when I accepted the news was eat something sweet. Well, I've resisted Monday and today. All I can promise is to take one meal at a time. I'm glad we have a lot of physical stuff to do around here...it's just unpacking, but it keeps my mind off things. My mom said we can always move back to PA and live w/her, but for right now that's really not an option. Moving costs big bucks even when you do it yourself.

Thank you again for allowing me to vent, and for your concern. I'm here for you, too!

Hugs back atcha,
Diane
Visit www.MaximizeYourWellness.com
(Ok, a shameless plug). I'm just here to learn how to say No to the S!

patticake
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Joined: Sun Apr 13, 2008 2:37 pm
Location: Pittsburgh,PA

Post by patticake » Thu May 01, 2008 2:17 am

Hi Diane, I hope you can hang in there. That is really a bummer. Just know we will be thinking of you. Patti

lmt2pt
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Post by lmt2pt » Fri May 02, 2008 10:19 pm

Diane,

I am so sorry. It is a pretty aweful job market right now. My brother in law got promoted only for them to eliminate his position 3 months later. Thankfully you have business opportunity. I'll keep my fingers crossed that you find work with benefits in the mean time. Heck, I won't be working next year so if you can hold off the next 9 months your welcome to my job. Wait, I make less than I did as a teenager babysitting. Nevermind, you don't want my job.
Heather

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Blithe Morning
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Post by Blithe Morning » Sat May 03, 2008 12:09 am

I'm not a socialist, but I think it's really really absurd to tie health insurance to employment. There has got to be a better way to get people cared for so that they don't fall through the cracks in case of job loss, job change, death of the provider, etc.

Diane, I'm really sorry for you. How awful. On the bright side, you have your food costs managed better now, I bet.

DianeA2Z
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Post by DianeA2Z » Sat May 03, 2008 1:50 am

Thank you all so much for your comments. And Blithe, yes, I truly agree with you! This country's health system is so screwed up, and there are so very many uninsured people. The candidate that comes up with a system that will cover everyone, regardless of pre-existing conditions, will get my vote.

We are really concentrating on building our business. It's something we want very badly and it's something we love doing. I've spent hours today working on e-mails and my blog. I'm working on getting as much mileage as I can from the internet. My husband feels relieved, actually, and much less stressed. I'm excited that we have more time to dedicate to our future.

One thing we will do is spend waaaay less money on eating out and take-out. We both love to cook, it's ridiculous to not indulge. My husband is the bomb when it comes to using coupons and taking advantage of in-store grocery savings. He really makes it fun to see how much money we can save. Thank God for small favors. :D

He's got a whole work schedule blocked out for us so we use our time in the most optimal manner. If we don't reach our goals it won't be for lack of trying!

Meanwhile, I'm holding tight to No S! I'm feeling less hungry in the evenings and I just love eating this way. I have more energy, and I'm starting to get more exercise just through doing things around the house. I enjoy being active and sooner or later the fat has got to melt.

Thank you again, everyone! You make my heart glad.

Hugs to you all,
Diane
Visit www.MaximizeYourWellness.com
(Ok, a shameless plug). I'm just here to learn how to say No to the S!

kccc
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Post by kccc » Sat May 03, 2008 2:56 am

Diane, I am so sorry you are dealing with this situation... and I admire how well you're doing so.

I hope your business is a tremendous success, and you look back on this time as hard at first, but a transition to a better life.

Best wishes.

DianeA2Z
Posts: 134
Joined: Fri Apr 11, 2008 6:39 pm
Location: San Diego
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Post by DianeA2Z » Fri May 09, 2008 5:39 am

I have come to the realization that hubby's layoff is a gift to us: a gift of time that we hadn't been using to build our business, and the business is what is closest to our hearts. He can collect unemployment, and we are restructuring our lives around doing the work we both love, living a more "green" life, finding interesting ways to save money and taking advantage of business tax write-offs. We are meeting some wonderful folks as we go about our work. I'm learning to not only "need" less, but to "want" less in the way of material things. We have so many plans and projects for our business, and now we have the time to work on them. We have a strong support system all throughout our up-line to the very top and we have strong company support. This is our time to make our dream come true. If we can't do it now, without time constraints, then we were never going to do it.

We just keep on keepin' on and enjoying every challenge and triumph that comes our way.

Diane
Visit www.MaximizeYourWellness.com
(Ok, a shameless plug). I'm just here to learn how to say No to the S!

kccc
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Joined: Fri Oct 27, 2006 1:12 am

Post by kccc » Fri May 09, 2008 6:09 pm

DianeA2Z wrote:I have come to the realization that hubby's layoff is a gift to us: a gift of time that we hadn't been using to build our business, and the business is what is closest to our hearts.
Diane, how wonderful! Thank you for sharing your update. I love reading "happy endings" (or beginnings). So glad things that worked out after all, which I am sure is in part due to your own positive and "can-do" approach.

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