Anyone else suddenly unemployed?

If so, what happened?

Here's my story. Been working at a local, family owned commercial printing since June of 1980. Started in the stripping department stripping negs, filing plates and negs, etc. In 84 was made supervisor of the prepress dept and ran it with 4 - 6 other folks until 94. Plant manager left and I was promoted into that position. Got tired of babysitting so-called adults after 8 years and resigned to go back to the prepress and what I loved about the job. Now, just a few days ago the owner says customers arn't paying so he shut the doors on April 9th.

No severence, no accrued vacation. Just time worked.

Well, that's my sad story. What happened to you? And more importantly, how did you fill your days after. I'm actively appling for everything I think I even remotely qualify for but there's no calls for interviews. I'm required 3 applications a week and usually file more than that a day. Do I need to slow down and save some of them for the next few weeks? It honestly wouldn't bother me to collect some umemployment $$$$'s. But I'd rather be working.

So talk to me. I'm a fish out of water here. Never looked for work in my life, heck I was hired on at the printing company while visiting my brother who worked there.

Zacsdaddy

definitely talk to a labour lawyer.

With that much time in with an employer, you are entitled to severance.

Desdinova said:

definitely talk to a labour lawyer.

With that much time in with an employer, you are entitled to severance.

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Yep, not right they're just closing the doors are you're left with nothing. I thank everyday that I work for my grandfathers company.

Desdinova said:

definitely talk to a labour lawyer.

With that much time in with an employer, you are entitled to severance.

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+1

Being unemployed is a terrible feeling but for me what's worse is looking for a decent job now that I don't currently have a job...with the economy the way it is, it is easy to feel useless or unhire-able. But just like it wasn't your fault you lost your job; is for the same reason why the difficulties of finding immediate employment is not an easy task. But who knows, you may have different luck than me, it's a different market. Regardless, don't get ahead of yourself and don't let your dissatisfaction get a ahead of you...

Desdinova said:

definitely talk to a labour lawyer.

With that much time in with an employer, you are entitled to severance.

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No, you're not.

You are entitled to whatever you can document from employee handbooks, labor contracts, precedent-setting trends from other employees that have been let go, etc.

If you were contribuiting to a pension plan or 401K, make sure that is intact, and that the employer has been kicking in with his share.

Is your shop unionized? If so, start there to see what you can get from your employer.

If you do seek out a labor lawyer, join forces with your fellow co-workers to split the costs and attorney's fees. Make it a Class Action suit.

In any case, don't hold your breath. If this employer had to shut down a formerly profitable business, and couldn't find another company to buy him out or merge with, you can bet there probably isn't much left in the way of assets. Anything you get will likely be pennies on the dollar compared to what you think he owes you.

Sorry if all this seems pessimistic ... just trying to inject some reality into the situation.

In the meantime, good luck with your job search. It used to be said "If you've got printer's ink on your hands, you'll always have money in your pockets." I don't know how true this is in today's economy, where even presidential campaign literature was being outsourced and printed overseas.

Take a look at your "transferable job skills" ... even if you can't get employment in the printing industry, you can still take advantage of your supervisory and management experience to pivot yourself into a different line of work.

If I may be so bold to offer advice.... You have obvious skills.

Time to become and entrepeneur.

Find places you find interesting and visit them. View areas where you could fit in and improve their operation. Ask for an application. A little tact will go a long way too.

I don't envy you one bit. You seem to have a great attitude though!

Join the club. It is especially hard in the current economic climate. I know several small business owners that are terrified. We here rhetoric on the idiot box about "jobs bills" and "job creation efforts" but its all BS. The only major source of jobs at the moment is.....government. As long as the current administration keeps piling on regulations, taxes, etc (or talking about doing so), most corporations and small businesses are scared to death. They are trying to stay afloat and maintain their businesses and are afraid to add new employees. The move is to use part-time and/or temporary employees, not add positions with benefits.

Welcome to the era of "hope and change". With leaders who know zilch about business, and don't understand how to run a business, the results are inevitable.

It seems like a cliché but you have to network. This means letting everyone you know know that you're looking. If you're involved with any clubs, bowling league, church, what have you, get the word out. Think back to people you've worked with in the past who may have moved to other related or unrelated jobs. Do the detective work to find them and get back in touch.

I've been out for 15 months and it's almost over for me now. In my case what worked best was the combination of a job posting (found through Indeed.com) in combination with a former coworker whose e-mail I managed to track down a year ago after a couple of years of no contact. Every case will be different, and a good dose of luck will be what comes through, as is the case in good times as well.

Good luck!

- Chris

A few more thoughts (after lunch):

- Visit your local library for reading material. What Color is Your Parachute? is a popular read for the subject but I'm sure there are others that they can suggest.

- Be aware that you may go for long periods of time not only without an interview but without acknowledgment that any of your applications has been received. This is the modern reality. It is not a reflection on you, personally. It is not uncommon to score an interview, fire off the appropriate thank you letters and never hear back when the job goes to someone else.

- Some local libraries and churches have organized employment clubs where people can gather weekly or monthly to trade experiences and/or tips on job searching. If nothing else, where this was a company shutdown, consider organizing get-togethers with the others that you were working with. You'll probably only get a 1/3 take rate, but it gives you something to look forward to. As far as meeting location is concerned, in our case, we ended up meeting at the local community college food court at a non meal time. That way it was free and we weren't disturbing anyone or putting a money burden on any attendees.

- Chris

Your right about severence not being automatic. First thing the Texas Workforce Commission told us. Just like you don't have to give two weeks notice before leaving a job. Having been the manager I was on the other side of this type thing long enough that I helped write the employee manual. Only thing is, no one can find a copy. Not even me. Too long ago. Hell, I even looked for the original negatives. No luck.

With the employee manual we could have fought for earned vacation, nothing else.

And I hate networking. What's facebook good for? What the hell is twitter? And I've never texted in my life.

Oh well. It will turn around, or it won't. No reflection on me, just the global economy. I've got a beautiful wife and two beautiful kids. No pressure of "Did you find a job today, Daddy?". My wife's been out of work in the distant past and remembers being turned into everyone's "errand boy" and nearly took my Mother's head off at church the other night when she made a simple request. Definately protective of me.

She's even up-in-arms over me trying to sell a few razors.

THIS IS NOT AN OFFER TO SELL RAZORS. JUST A FEW GUYS YAKIN'.

Heck, the other weekend we went to a local town and visited the antique shops and I scored a barbers hone for $15.00 and a carborundum hone for $5.00 and she won't let me offer them! Says "You might need 'em - so keep 'em."

I am hitting the government jobs pretty hard. (that's where she works, too) and am working every inside angle I can think of. It's just difficult, at the end of the day, to look back and think "What did I contribute to the family, today?" You can only knock on so many doors a day and make so many e-mails, faxes, etc.

So today I mowed the yard, had the tires rotated and balanced on the truck and complained about my life on the internet. I'll probably cook dinner tonight, again, too.

Zacsdaddy

I forgot to add. Also had oral surgery the week after being laid off and the Doctor said "No cigars for a week!"

As for the booze, it's not been a problem for over 30 years. I didn't quit drinking, just quit using it for depression. I've got a bottle of Forty Creek Small Batch Reserve Whisky that she gave me for Christmas sitting in the liquor cabinet with the seal unbroken. It's for when I land a job.

And my only concession to poverty, at the moment is switching from Oliva Serie V Double Robusto cigars to Don Diego Babies.

Zacsdaddy

Zacsdaddy said:

...And I hate networking. What's facebook good for? What the hell is twitter? And I've never texted in my life.

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I didn't mean that kind of networking necessarily, but I know what you mean. I'm a reasonably outgoing person, but I'm not going to start cold calling my friends, chatting about this and that, then casually slipping in a line about my job seeking.

In the end you'll do what you're comfortable with.

It's good to hear about your family support. After week 3 I had to kindly but firmly ask my mother not to inquire after my job search on every phone call. 'Just didn't want to hear it.

Assuming you can get health benefits from your spouse's job is the single best news I can find in your situation.

Carry on, and good luck.

- Chris

Someone mentioned earlier networking. I agree with that. Evern if your job is safe, keep networking. you never know when you need those contacts.

I thought my job was pretty safe at the start of the year. Now with some changes in my company and recent changes with healthcare, I question the safety of my job. I have started talking with my contacts and have actually got several promising leads. It is usually easier to find a job when you are employed. So always keep your eyes open at your business and industry.

Good luck.

Zacsdaddy said:

You can only knock on so many doors a day and make so many e-mails, faxes, etc. So today I mowed the yard, had the tires rotated and balanced on the truck and complained about my life on the internet. I'll probably cook dinner tonight, again, too.

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Way to keep it constructive.

I hear you on the networking. I hate it and pretty fairly suck at it. And yet, every job I've had worth having has been through a connection, while my two misfires have come via the classifieds. Networking can feel oily but doesn't have to. After all, getting hired on while you're visiting your brother at his printing-job also counts.

Good luck.

I don't see how so many people are anti networking, I network with almost every one I meet (almost every one I meet works in my industry to some extent) even when I'm shy about what I do it comes out that I'm a fashion photographer and I have shot for this magazine or that brand and I've gotten lots of work through people then saying "wow i like that magzine/ brand, i need a photographer" (or their friend does or whatever). Yeah it can feel kinda slimy some times when people are like ohh i do such and such here is my business card but I'm not going to work with them unless we then connect on a personal level. And yeah I've like straight up hustled a few editors or designers but it never feels that odd.

I dunno, my work is the most important thing in my life so it comes out in conversations.

I also have like 4 twitter accounts and love face book, you gotta have hype if you want to be a star.

Last June at the age of 51 I was let go after 8 years at the same company and the only thing I received was unemployment. It took me almost 8 months to find a job. In all the years I have been working it was the first time I was unemployed. The hardest part for me was the isolation, I was in sales and always had interaction with customers and staff, in a day that was gone.

The first thing I did was decide not to gain weight. I started an exercise program and stuck to it. We eliminated all the junk food in the house so I would not be tempted to snack. I made it a priority to take care of my health. If you haven't been to the doctor go and get a physical.

Looking for a job was the first priority of the day, I would get up search all the websites and call the contacts that I knew. I made looking for a job a 4 hour process each day.

I remodeled a bathroom and repainted several rooms in the house. After a while I did some small projects for relatives, it helped pass the time.

If you have a local charity where you can help you might want to volunteer, it gets you out and you can put it on your resume. Make sure your resume is up to date and it doesn't hurt to have a service review it.

I came to the realization that I was not going to find a job in my field and I decided to expand my job search. I ended up with a job that had a few componets in my area, but it is not the same. You have experience in supervision and that can help set you apart.

You qualify for training and in many cases get tuition paid for. In hindsight I would have taken advantage of that part of unemployment. I could have finished my degreee in respiratory therapy at no cost. You can go to school and still collect unemployment.

That unemployment you are collecting is taxable after the first 2400.00 and you will have to declare it as income next year. You can have the government take out the taxes and it will help out next year. Be careful about taking any retirement, it is viewed as income and in most cases it will affect your unemployment.

You will get past this, it is just a bump in the road. Keep positive and look at it this way, summer is coming and you can spend some time outside. I bought a roadbike and found a new hobby that I really like.

In hindsight it was the best thing to happen to me, I found a job I like and the people are great to work for. Different can be better.

I am still in college, so I have not experienced anything, but I just want to wish you all good luck with the job findings.

I feel for you all. I was very suddenly unemployed about 5 or 6 years ago and it was very very tough to find a job in my area even back then. I can only imagine how it would be now. Good luck to you all.