That blows. 2 weeks severance per year work is usually the standard, which for you would be like 38 weeks worth.
I’m not really sure what you are asking about “ethics”. Your company is eliminating your position of 19 years and giving you a bullshit severance package. What ethical obligation do you believe you owe them besides doing the bare minimum work for the next couple of months and not committing any criminal acts or contractual violations against them while you focus on looking for a new job?
I would start reaching out to your contacts now, even if you plan to take a bit of a break.
Don’t worry about your president or former president seeing your announcement on LinkedIn. He knows your getting laid off. If he doesn’t like it, tell him to go fuck off. I just don’t know how effective those broadcasts are. I don’t think it hurts either. So I don’t know.
Consider asking yourself this: how much would it be worth to you to have your next job lined up right now, so that you could immediately jump into it as soon as you give your notice?
If that’s worth more than a $1000 to you (as it would be to me), then the “retention bonus” should not have any relevance to the question of your job search. It’s nice if it runs into February and you haven’t gotten any hits on a new job, but IMHO it should provide no incentive for you to stick around after you’ve lined up something new.
A thousand dollar retention bonus doesn’t seem like very much to me. And rather than going to LinkedIn, I think you may want to just mention to your contacts at those companies that you’re considering a career change. Perhaps not even mention that it’s a layoff, and definitely don’t show any bitterness.
I think you should start immediately but quietly, like during phone calls or in-person meetings. If you get an offer to start sooner than February, that’s great. Your company’s loss and your gain. Depending on your state laws they may still have to pay out the unused PTO even if you leave earlier than February.
You’ve mentioned your former boss positively. Can she bew helpful in sorting out the ethics? I don’t want you to get caught in something that would let current boss/HR kill any aspect of your severance beyond that $1000, or wreck your reputation.
February is not that far away. The company should expect you to be looking, including clients and members.
I’ll echo some of the other comments: use your personal email, computer, phone and reach out to clients on your own time. I would start with a quality over quantity approach and seek out places where you have the best relationships and reputation. This will keep you focused on doing a really thorough job with each potential opportunity. IME recently people are getting jobs where they have a personal connection of some sort.
Always be extremely positive and try to leverage your understanding of your current job as a way for the new company to save time or money.
It’s a miserable time getting let go and looking for something new, but in my personal experience as well as my friends’ experience it very often results in a better situation. Try to keep that as motivation while grinding through the job hunt.
That’s really unfair since a company can also prevent you from taking it.
Yes I think you should send out a notice to your contributors. Say good bye and how much you enjoyed working with them and thank them for their continued loyalty as contributing members of [company]. Let them know that your data management/processing and verification position has been eliminated. If they have any questions or concerns they can contact [La Jefe] your president or [El Jefe] CEO of [company] directly. Apply everywhere you can and let [La Jefa] know if you get a job you might not be there until Feb 5.
I don’t think I’ll stir the pot by suggesting they contact TPTB. La Jefa is surely aware that I’ll be looking for another job, and may not be there until February.
I’ve been laid off a few times in my career, and I’ve had to lay people off a few times. I’ve got a fair amount of experience on both sides of that particular fence.
One of the things that I learned after my first significant layoff was that my dedication to the company and to seeing the transition through ultimately meant nothing. I think unless an employer puts significant retention money on the table, or if you have an idea that a sabbatical is what you would really prefer, the moment you find out a layoff is coming you go balls to the wall on the job search.
I would flip the toggle on LinkedIn that puts the “open to work” banner on your page immediately. And I would start working contacts next week.
I don’t want to sound belittling, because I sympathize 1000%. And I don’t know what kind of financial stress your company is going through either. But that retention offer is not on par with what it should be for you to put your future on hold. Borderline offensive - I’m angry on your behalf.
I’m sorry you’re going through this - layoffs are terrible, and the time of year makes it even worse. Don’t get discouraged if there aren’t a lot of nibbles on any of your applications right away. Hiring seems to almost grind to a halt between now and mid-January. Also, I’ve read suggestions that LinkedIn is a good website to find jobs but that you’re better off going to the company’s website and filling out the application there instead of through LinkedIn.
On a personal note, please take care of yourself. Being laid off absolutely rocks your world. I was laid off after 10 years at a company and really struggled with my sense of self-worth, anger, disappointment, and feeling rejected. Logically, I knew layoffs were coming and there was a chance I was on the list, but my emotional side just needed a minute to process, throw a temper tantrum, and come to terms. And the thought of starting a new job after 10 years was scary - I can’t imagine how it must feel after double that!
I don’t have a paid membership, and under my picture on my profile there is a button labeled “open to”. When I select that it, asks me what I might be open to; looking for a job, hiring volunteering, etc.
Once I’ve clicked “finding a new job quote, it gives me a whole bunch of options, limiting what I’m interested in.
I think so. I definitely would. Start with the people you think you have an actual friendship with. It’s unlikely that one of these people would sell you out. Why would they?
