It worries me too bud!

Then you and Julie better wait on having little ones:uhuh:

:(

Not in any rush bud!

Didn't sound like whining, you were simply reflecting on a situation that may hit all of us at some point.
Last November, I had to inform 12 outstanding employees of their impending fate. I did get far enough ahead of the curve so as not to blindside anyone, but my seasonal staff will be facing hourly rate cuts and fewer hours for 2009. My salaried people will be working more hours as a result. The bottom line is this is really an opportunity to prove your value as an employee, regardless of your position. The reality is there is a growing talent pool out there. People are willing to take someone else's job, do it better, and accept lower compensation.

If I were in your shoes Paul, I'd wave goodbye to the working life and live on my own terms, which it sounds like you could do.

Yea Mike .. Its called cutting each others throats ..

Salary ? sure great .. Work late at night ? sure boss.. Work every Saturday ? no problem .. Work for less ? ..Ok .. How about Sundays ? oh I can't work Sunday .. Next !!!!

Paul, it sounds like your company is pretty small and has serviced some very volatile industries. As such, even with last years performance they are looking into a huge drop in cashflow and few resources or leverage to prop things up for a longer recession.

But the behavior should tell you something about where your company could be headed, it doesn't sound like they're trying to retain talent.

Sucks all around.

One thing that's surprising is that even though the economy didn't feel all that great under Bush, a lot of companies were expanding...and many seem to have been really exposed. Do we really need a Starbucks on every other corner? Did Caterpillar think the construction boom wasn't going to ever slow down?

Fortunately my line of work is pretty diversified, and some of our customers have been doing pretty well. That being said I'm prepared for it to catch up to us eventually.

-spence

Still working with Tele? they just bought another competitor... if the state ever gets it's act together we were looking at a new system....

Man losing your job is the pits. :(

Some of the churches are starting up support groups to give direction in how to find jobs, if that would help.

Nothing going on there, but who knows, with an acquisition there's even more need for our stuff.

-spence

Sorry to hear that more of us are facing hard times While many american citizens are losing thier jobs and looking for work, I have witnessed a huge increase in illeagal aliens in the construction industry. I am a master carpenter with over 35 years experience, and I am sickened at what is going on. First of all the quality of the work is horrible and the fact that they are paying no taxes, workmans comp, or health insurance is very unfair to all of us that are trying to run a business in a leagle way. Why are they being allowed to do this?
Seems like whatever jobs cant be shipped overseas are being filled by illeagals who are shipped here. The guys who are running this cheap labor scam are getting rich and stealing our jobs. I am currently working and am more worried about the younger folks who have to compete for these jobs.
Ok I had to vent a little

Its the same situation from the top down, Ed. Everyone is doing more with less. From a hiring perspective, its a great opportunity to acquire very good talent that may not have been available during the peak ecomonic boom when there were fewer potential candidates out there.
Throat cutting? Not in my mind. You need to adapt to survive, IMO. I would call it value creation.
There's no guarantee if we come out of this mess that things will be as they were before. What's happening now may become the norm, meaning as good as one may be at their job, they'll need to get even better just to keep a small piece of the pie.

Which is the very thing this country was founded on.

I'm already awesome .. Can't imagine being any awesomer..:jester: I made it to 30 from 300 .. no xmas partys, no golf outings, no working on bosses house ,, no stopping by the office after to work to say HI, no bad mouthing others,, no using co workers as rungs on the ladder of success,, not related ,, nobodys brother in law . I'll work like a dog ,, none of this other monkey buisness ,. Makes me ill ..:yak6: Stupid ,dumb, pride won't allow me to compete on this level .. You see it going this way as work gets tight .. disgusting ,,.:rollem::yak4:

On another level, I did some reading this week and one author noted although things suck right now, many people expressed a sense of relief when notified of their job loss. Why?
Many people are very unhappy with their employment and it goes beyond their income/financial position. There's miserable rich folks out there too.
"If I hadn't lost my(crappy/miserable/stressful) job at XYZ company, I would have never realized there were better things out there."

The stuff you mention above wasn't what I was thinking in terms of creating value. I'm talking about acquiring new/more skills and yes, having to put in a little more time/become more flexible.

exactly! The people I know who got laid off are seeking advanced education, certifications, etc. If this country wants to be competitive as a whole, we need to be competitive individually.

The scariest thing one of my employers ever told me was, "You can stay here as long as you want." It sent shivers down my spine as the statement implied I was as good as I'd ever be at my job. Since then, I've followed the above stated path and will never look backwards.

as i was watching the bud ads super bowl sunday "THE GREAT AMERICAN LARGER" i was thinking it is now foreign owned-wow-we export all our jobs overseas and companys.i'm thinking looking back it pretty much started with sam walton.

Paul - sorry to hear this. Fortunately for you, you are good and will continue to do well. Did they slash your commission too?

Very tough times - thinking of starting a job board here, for networking purposes....

How about some ethics/morality training on Wall Street . :doh: Some of those guys should get marched straight to the gallows . I can appreciate trying to put a positive spin on the situation to make things better . Its not the workers fault or lack of skills in this country . Its all the robbing and stealing at all levels . Everyone wants to live like a rock star .

Jobs and Benefits would be good.

I would love the hear the 3 things that Wall St did to warrant your feelings? This sentiment is spreading across America and is the same mindset as blaming McDonalds for fat people. :smash:

everyone should read this
http://insight.kellogg.northwestern....e_do_about_it/

non-political, non-headline news version of the cause of the current situation. Wall St "greed" and lapse in ethics were not the cause.
Anyone ever see the movie "High Noon" with Gary Cooper? This reminds of the that movie. When everything is going ok, everyone loved their 401Ks, loved their returns, everyone was on Etrade, Shcwab, Scott Trade, everyone shared in the prosperity. Then when that bubble bursts, due to many, many factors, suddenly Wall St is an evil empire of greedy scum. Interesting.

John, if you decide to do this, I'd be more than happy to volunteer my time to help anyone here with their resumes or preparing for interviews. I've got 13 + years experience in Human Resources and been helping out some friends recently who are looking for work. There are still some good jobs out there, but it's very competitive.

I agree with the above, but its not all Wall St's fault. There's treachery in every industry.
Warren Buffett says, "I like businesses that are set up so even an idiot can run it, because eventually an idiot WILL be running it."

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/28/bu...i.html?_r=2&hp

http://www.lieffcabrasersecurities.c...FQETGgod6ktxZg

http://www.observer.com/2008/politic...crooks-justice


http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm..._nader22m.html

http://crooksandliars.com/nicole-bel...-shadow-market

http://crooksandliars.com/silentpatr...-wall-st-draft
http://www.organicconsumers.org/arti...icle_15463.cfm


http://www.commondreams.org/views03/0502-12.htm
http://www.intellectualconservative....-crooks-first/

http://blackwellbrief.blogspot.com/2...et-crooks.html

Here's a bunch incase you don't like the source . Its always up to the American worker to build the economy back up .. How about once and for all stop the bleeding at the top .. This is the third recession I've worked through in my life . Not easy building a life when this crap happens every ten years . This may seem simplistic but I just feel when the economy grows fat theiving bastadges steal everything . Then its up to Joe Shmo (me) to build it up again .

Yes Sir I can't agree with you more on that!
Im glad the Co. I worked for closed it's doors and I changed my career,I love my job every day there's something new,Im very lucky to have found something that intrests me 100%

Plus Im appreciated there........Im going place's:uhuh:

Good for you, I am glad that there is at least one shining point of light still out there from Bush Sr's. second term

This would be good. Networking here has worked for me. I have done work at a couple member's homes and am currently working in another's this week. Just had to expand the area I was willing to travel to.