Got handed my walking papers UPDATED! #120

Man I feel for ya. I lived it as a kid. My dad worked at Bethlehem Steel just long enough to get nothing when they closed. He bounced between a couple jobs then got hired at Trico. He was there just long enough to get nothing when NAFTA allowed them to move to Mexico. He passed away at 57. He was beat down. But always held his head high and did what he had to do. My father in law had a similar story. Hopefully you got some sort of severance package. My prayers are with you.
 
Back in 1976 a savvy Wall Street lawyer told me the Dark Ugly Secret of American Capitalism is that many companies are run for the benefit of their top officers-often the top officer. Another friend observed that many companies that used to be good to work for aren't so good anymore. All the little perks and bennies that an older breed of managers understood were good for morale have been eliminated, likewise for reasons that many here understand companies have eliminated all the social events, no after hours socializing, no discussing things over lunch or dinner,work environments have become more formal, more rules of decorum, you talk about work, nothing else. Retirement-if you make it-consists of signing your papers, emptying out your desk, turning in your ID card and parking sticker, and closing the door behind you.
 
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Acorn, I like the suggestion to work or consult for a competitor. Much as it grates, you might even be able to consult for the new owners. Maybe call up the new owner's HQ, explain your situation calmly, highlighting that 30% EBITDA, and offer to run another location or consult to improve performance elsewhere.

I worked for a very large corporation and was essentially pushed out the door at 60 as new management for my group thought I was too expensive. Another part of the company valued my expertise and hired me as a consultant. I made good dough and left of my own volition after a couple of years.

While being treated the way you have been treated sure feels personal, as others have said above, it isn't. It's got nothing to do with your performance or your value.

Wishing you the best of luck.
 
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One of the big problems we got going on is labor does not trust management and management does not trust labor. Both have some pretty solid reasons for their mistrust. But, until that is fixed we never be what we once were. NO MATTER WHAT GOVERNMENT DOES. Without management and labor working had and hand for the benefit of each businesses that produce REAL WEALTH will nor prosper.

In the years after WWII when this country really boomed and found prosperity, the spread between the top level of management's compensation and the top craftsman's was not where near as wide as it is currently.

Consult, or coordinate. I go out as a coordinator now during refinery outages and make almost twice the wage I did as front line supervision
 
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After 30 years of loyal service, my company went thru chapter 11 and was sold. The new owners were in the south and wanted nothing to do with the Yankee facilities. They offered full retirement for everyone 55 or over (with an enhancement to age 65). I was 54. I was offered a promotion but no way I was going to move to godawful ***.

Several, competitors offered me a job, but it still would have involved a move. Instead I became a consultant EVERY one of my former company's competitors.

Only worked 9.3 days a month, but made more money than before. Did that for 10 years and then retired for good.

I started out worrying and depressed. In the end I found that there could be nothing that could bring me down. There was truly life after Company X.

I DID have a pension, and they couldn't take that away from me. Now I go fishing and enjoy my retirement.
 
Acorn;
You will be fine, maybe not in the short term but soon.
Life is full of "unexpected detours." You just got one. New road is unfamiliar but you will anticipate the new destination.
Do not: Get drunk, kick the dog, smash a grapefruit in the wife's face (only Cagney can get away with that).
I'm 70 now and retired after 54 years paying in.
1997 I got the same deal as you after 11 years, same thought. Sent my resume out on the then novel internet. Got hired on by the pharma biz, made 1/3 of my lifetime $$$ in 8 years. "President's Club" (top 1% of sales reps) in 2004, unemployment club end of 2005. This was after my manager said "Joe you are so good, you will retire from this." Yeah, no. At 53 I looked not like either Ken or Barbie. Taught school for 15 years until Covid near to killed me and broken back hurt too much to work.
Upside is I make about $500/ month more sitting than school teacher take home. Keep the faith, you will be OK. Best wishes. Joe
 
These punks did you wrong. As my mom always said, "when one door closes, another opens". You will make it, never give up on yourself. Look ahead and stay positive.
 
One more sharing my story of learning my departure was the best thing to happen to me (and really did not think it was at the time).

I had been a department director for nearly twenty years, built it from scratch essentially, was cut for a buck right before Christmas.

Worked as an agency therapist for about 6 months, then was hired to work in a pediatric ER, Friday,Saturday, and Sunday 7P to 7A. Greatest job ever. Was there for 19 years and loved it.

Don't lose hope, I know it's not easy but hopefully it's the best thing for you as well.
 
One of the things I noticed when I came to the US in '97 was that there were things unions were allowed to do that had been outlawed in the UK, the closed shop being one. After living here a little while, I began to understand that the employers of the US got the unions they deserve.

What has happened to the OP is disgusting, but I cannot say I am shocked.
 
Add me to the list of those who lost a good job as the result of a Chapter 11 filing. But I was fortunate enough to get an equivalent job at about the same pay within a month, with a semi-competitor. And my wife also had a reasonably well-paying job, enough to keep the wolf away from the door for a long time if necessary. We had to move to a different town, but that part wasn't too difficult. Regarding the non-complete clause I had signed, I ignored it. Nothing happened. It is fairly toothless in Texas inless you leave with a file cabinet full of trade secrets. That same company tried to enforce that non-compete agreement against a friend I worked with who was also let go, and the company lost big time in court.

I did get a measure of revenge against that company. I would have been a key witness in a multi-million dollar liability lawsuit filed against the company when I was working there, and my testimony would have greatly helped the company fight the lawsuit. The company attempted to get me to testify in support of their defense arguments somewhat after they let me go, and I told them to stuff it. The company later lost the case in court. I remember that one of the company's lawyers threatened me by saying that he would issue a subpoena to force me to appear as a defense witness. I replied that if he did that, the only thing I would testify to was having no recollection of anything. And that ended any more such threats. It is never a good idea for a defense lawyer to subpoena a hostile defense witness.
 
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I feel your pain Acorn.
In December I met my new boss face-to-face for the very first time (my THIRD boss in just nine months, BTW).
The reason he came to see me in person? To tell me that the Corporate bean-counters had decided to "downsize" (a.k.a. FIRE) 30 people at my level nation-wide, and that my position was one of the 30 being eliminated.
I got about an hour to pack my personal belongings and he hired an Uber to drive me home since I had come to work that day driving my company car.
No warning, no advance notice, nothing. Just "you're out - goodbye".
At least they gave me a decent severance package - 3 months pay spread out over a 4-month period, plus I still got my semi-annual bonus, which amounted to another couple of weeks worth of my paycheck.
As a 60 year old white male, my prospects for finding a comparable new job are, shall we say, less than stellar.
Hiring me won't fill anybody's EEOC quotas, so basically I am at a HUGE disadvantage when competing with the 30 and 40 year olds in today's job market. Especially those whose demographics fit some "intersectional" profile.
Thankfully my wife and I have both had professional careers with good earnings for a few decades, and we have always lived well below our means and invested the surplus. Plus we own our home free and clear (except for taxes), so even if I don't find another job, we should be fine, financially speaking.
It's still a real gut-punch to be summarily dismissed like that with no warning though.
But that seems to be the normal modus operendai for Corporate America these days.
Personally, I'm going to draw my $1k a week in unemployment until it runs out, and if God doesn't provide me with a job before my unemployment benefits end, then I'll just retire a year earlier than I originally planned. I've always planned on starting to draw my SSI just as soon as possible at 62 anyway.
I wish you the best in your search for a new position.
 
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The first thing to do is not take this personally - whomever bought the place is only concerned with numbers.

After you have a beer and get past the shock, recall that you have nearly half a century of experience in your field - such people are nearly unobtainable in the actual labor market today, where there are more jobs than workers. We Boomers, complete with a work ethic and good 'soft skills,' have been moving to the exits in exponentially increasing numbers since 2010, with 2021-2028 likely the peak exodus. Look around in your field, don't be afraid to take a short-term gig, and remember your professional network.

I sort of retired in late 2020; my wife told me to get back to work last fall. I had a job in precisely my field in my first interview, and the thirty-somethings doing the hiring were relieved to find someone with experience. While what I'm doing is not 'safe,' meaning there's no job security, who cares - I'll be 68 soon and every day lived is bonus time, every dollar earned gravy on the meat-and-potatoes of SocSec and small pensions. Because there is no job security and no benefits (I already have Medicare), my take home pay is the best ever.

The system is cold and uncaring. Accept it, grumble a little while, and move on. Take care of you and don't sweat how things have changed - that you can't fix.
 
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BC38 said:
No warning, no advance notice, nothing. Just "you're out - goodbye".
Click to expand...

In February 2009 I got the same treatment, with a very piddling severance. The grandparent company bought some other title insurance underwriters and I got squeezed out in the merger. There I was, laid off in a recession sensitive industry in my mid-50s, too young to retire.

I got a few bucks doing some work for a State agency that knew me, then somehow I got wind of a document review project that a specialty employment agency was hiring for. The project was described as being for 4 weeks, and I figured at least for 4 weeks I wouldn't be dissipating my assets. I got onto the project and time passed and after 4 months I was still working on the project. When there was a partial termination on the project the employment agency said its client specifically asked if I would stay on longer and of course my answer was "Heck yes!" A temporary job that started at 4 weeks turned into a 6 month job. That carried me along until a dear sweet lady who got laid off the week after I did put in a good word for me at her new job. I sent in my resume, and when the senior partner called me he said he was tired of hiring inexperienced people who didn't know what they were doing and hired me over the phone. I stayed there until I retired.

Keep shaking the trees. When I got canned the first time, the father of a friend called somebody he knew, who didn't have any openings but knew somebody who did. I drove through a blizzard to get to the interview. I was 20 minutes late but they figured I wasn't going to make it at all. I got the job.

Believe me, you are not alone. Keep plugging away looking for a new job and good luck to you.
 
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LVSteve said:
One of the things I noticed when I came to the US in '97 was that there were things unions were allowed to do that had been outlawed in the UK, the closed shop being one. After living here a little while, I began to understand that the employers of the US got the unions they deserve.
Click to expand...

A very famous publisher back in the Depression Era 1930s
told his fellow publishers, "Labor does not create unions. Management creates unions."
 
Golddollar said:
In February 2009 I got the same treatment, with a very piddling severance. The grandparent company bought some other title insurance underwriters and I got squeezed out in the merger. There I was, laid off in a recession sensitive industry in my mid-50s, too young to retire.

I got a few bucks doing some work for a State agency that knew me, then somehow I got wind of a document review project that a specialty employment agency was hiring for. The project was described as being for 4 weeks, and I figured at least for 4 weeks I wouldn't be dissipating my assets. I got onto the project and time passed and after 5 months I was still working on the project. When there was a partial termination on the project the employment agency said its client specifically asked if I would stay on longer and of course my answer was "Heck yes!" A temporary job that started at 4 weeks turned into a 7 month job. That carried me along until a dear sweet lady who got laid off the week after I did put in a good word for me at her new job. I sent in my resume, and when the senior partner called me he said he was tired of hiring inexperienced people who didn't know what they were doing and hired me over the phone. I stayed there until I retired.

Keep shaking the trees. When I got canned the first time, the father of a friend called somebody he knew, who didn't have any openings but knew somebody who did. I drove through a blizzard to get to the interview. I was 20 minutes late but they figured I wasn't going to make it at all. I got the job.

Believe me, you are not alone. Keep plugging away looking for a new job and good luck to you.
Click to expand...


Yeah, in order to qualify for unemployment I am applying or interviewing for a minimum of 3 jobs per week. So I'm definitely "shaking the tree" looking for a new gig.
But if that doesn't pan out, then so be it. It won't ruin me if I end up having to retire a year ahead of schedule. :D
Especially since my wife is still working, and I'm already collecting a pension with my medical insurance fully paid for from my 26 year career at a Fortune 100 company.
 
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The fact that you will get by is secondary. You are lucky in that respect, to be sure, but there is no valid reason for businesses to treat their employees this way. The golden rule of "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you" has been abandoned by Corporate America, if indeed it ever existed. It has happened to my son twice when places he worked were taken over by other companies though it wasn't as abrupt as what happened to you and he had some warning of what was going to happen. In his case, each time led to a better job, but that was due to his field (nuclear energy). Companies want employee loyalty but don't see it as a two way street. It's just one of the practices that led to unions and if it continues, there will be a resurgence of unions as we are seeing happening with Starbucks and Amazon.

I hope the situation for you works out for the better and leads to a door of opportunity.
 
With unemployment benefits and Social Security I hope you enjoy your new adventure. Have fun
 
NFrameFred said:
I was told by the original company president (who held multiple degrees and professional licenses) many, many years ago that those "will not compete" stipulations (in writing or not) are not 'worth the paper they're written on'.

Basically, he explained that the courts have ruled that an employer cannot make you give up your right to earn a living. Barring running afoul of copyrights or patent laws those clauses are meaningless and only designed to intimidate.
Click to expand...

This.
Unfortunately in the business I have had dealings with...and the one I am in now....they are a fact of life. Some companies will enforce these agreements themselves in a fashion that would be " extremely detrimental to your physical safety and well-being".

One of my employers told me years ago when I worked in the office that it was all about making as much money as can be made as quick as can be made using any and all means to do so. If any of us had any moral or ethical concerns to "leave them at home as there was no room in the office" for such concerns.

IMHO there is no such thing as a career or corporate loyalty. In fact, "corporate loyalty" is a misnomer used to intimidate of manipulate employees. I haven't seen a company yet that would not hesitate to screw over their customers, their employees, or even their own executives.

I can strongly empathize with the OP as this kind of thing has happened to me many times...indeed, few of us on this forum can say it hasn't happened to them. If you are with a company that gets sold/merged/etc with other you are on borrowed time as the new ownership always has different plans and ways of doing things and these seldom fit with the way things were done.

I learned a long long time ago to treat every day at work as my last day. One day I will be right.
 
It's hard not to take it personal. So go ahead. Be angry. Be REAL angry. You made sacrifices for them all those years, and this is the payback. But you'll be ok. Your in a good spot with social security and medical benefits for yourself. In this economy you'll find a job quickly. But don't suppress your feelings or you'll eventually blow up. Take some time for yourself then evaluate and decide what you do & don't want to do. What you can and can't do. Then start looking. Sometimes by word of mouth employers find you.
 
I feel your pain, went through something similar around 1982/1983 along with about 30% of us then in western PA. Like many ended up moving south.

I don't know what your field is, but your experience and production would definitely be of great interest to others in your field. Possibly in slightly related fields. From the viewpoint of a geezer, a lot of us failed to instill any work ethic in your potential competition, many of whom won't have your experience.
 
After 49 years and 8 months on the job, it's time to put retirement options into play.

John Howells' books helped me and my wife make some critical retirement decisions. There are plenty other retirement books to help smooth the way into retirement.

The anxiety most people feel when we have to redefine how we value ourselves and review our financial picture can be overwhelming at first.

There is a strong recession wind blowing now that some say will surpass the turn of the century economic downturn.

Think of this event as a positive change in life.
 
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BC38 said:
As a 60 year old white male, my prospects for finding a comparable new job are, shall we say, less than stellar.
Hiring me won't fill anybody's EEOC quotas, so basically I am at a HUGE disadvantage when competing with the 30 and 40 year olds in today's job market. Especially those whose demographics fit some "intersectional" profile.
Click to expand...
When I was that age and wanted to get one final job to lead me into retirement, I made a bunch of changes.

First, I died my hair. Just a little gray left. Then I falsified my resume...well, sort of.

I took the dates off of my University degrees. I deleted the first 25 years. I only listed awards that I had received in the past 10 years.

It worked. When I filed for retirement 5 years later they couldn't believe how old I was.
 
It always works out in the end. I had three main jobs in my life and took whatever jobs I could find in between them.

My first real job lasted 19 years. I had moved up from the very lowest entry level position into management over that time period. But the company, which was a family owned business, closed down when the third generation owner was ready to retire and none of his kids were willing or able to take over. We did see it coming so it wasn't a total surprise. But my wife and I both worked there and we had a newborn son at the time, so it was a rough go for a while.

Eventually I got what was the best job I ever had, again starting at the bottom and working into a position I really liked. The pay and benefits were real good and I actually enjoyed the work. But 8 years later the company decided to move all operations to Mexico. Even though we were profitable and the stock price was going nowhere but up, they felt they could make even more money by paying less for labor in Mexico.

By then I was 50 years old which hindered my search for a new job. A lot of employers want to hire younger workers. But I got another job that was pretty good and figured I'd work there till I hit 65 then retire.

But the company was sold when I was 63 1/2 in a hush deal that none of us saw coming. The new owners started interviewing all the employees to decide whether they would keep them or not. Before they got to me I heard from those who had already been interviewed that they were offered a big pay cut and loss of all seniority if they wanted to stay on. I didn't even wait for my interview as I figured I was close enough to my target retirement date, so I retired at that point.

It turned out that my early retirement was the right choice in the end. The following year my wife was diagnosed with cancer which she fought for 4 years before losing the battle. I could never have continued working and taking care of her, with all the 200 mile round trips for chemo and tons of doctor appointments.
 
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