"Layoff Humor" Topic

So they call in all 200 of us in IT (for an large international firm) that support their 600 plus sites in North America, inform us that while the company's stock has more than doubled in the past 2 years, that we're gaining on our competion and that the multiple waves of lay-offs over the past 2 years has helped cut our IT costs in half annually, that they're sorry to announce another wave of cut backs.

Everyone has to sit at their desks and wait for HR to come by, tell us how sorry they are, but we're letting you go.

The humorous part, was that they've decided to outsource all support desks. Yes, every level, from tier 1 up through engineering.

Looking for a new job is no fun, especially at my age, but knowing what is about to happen to their IT support, will keep me smiling for a long time.

Dan

If they lay off everybody their profits should go to infinity. Sorry for the bad news. Job hunting is no fun.

What about setting up your own company, outsourcing your back office to say India or the Philippines and then using your intimate knowledge of how your former employer works to become the one with the contract?

Sorry to hear. I'm in the same boat (not IT though)good luck.

Be sure and tell them how glad you are they are letting you go now so you don't have to cry about the company going broke in the next 6 months.

Best of luck Dan & GR C17. I was out of work for 2 years and it was very tough. Hope you both get something soon,

Phil

When this is announced the share price will rise- apparently investors can only see less costs, even though the company suffers. Part of the problem is that people check efficiency
Turnover 100, Profit 10 = 10%
Turnover 50, Profit 8 = 16% So that's better! (Tax departments for governments suffer from this thinking, its all about the efficiency)

In Jon Ronson's "The Psychopath Test" there is a story of a big US Toaster manufacturer that is basically driven into the ground by this 'pump the share' tactic: It ended up with no real products, but until the last moment HUGE share ratios.

Actually, the company's share price is the highest it has ever been in the 65 years the company's been around…up .75 cents today after news broke about the lay-offs.

I don't think anyone gets too upset now-a-days when they get laid off. Years ago, there was a feeling that only poor workers got the ax, but today, when one is merely a small fish in a huge school of people all getting a notice at the same time, who takes it personally?

Sure it hurts financially, but do I think anyone in senior management cares, with a CEO who makes 8.25 million a year, plus extras…no.

Have been told that work is being outsourced to India. Apparently my last engineering work will be in designing and building the voice design to support their new support desk (smile).

What makes this a hoot, is that the company is a major staffing firm, working to hire and place employees worldwide, so they've done well, taking hundreds of US jobs over the past year and exporting them (smile).

Dan

Our company recently expanded to India. After the sacrificial goat was fired six months after the start up of our India offices, her replacement showed us the projections that upper management had made for the project. As you might guess, it involved a huge increase in profits immediately after launch, no ramping up and resolution of problems, nope, straight to big bucks. The joke is that ANYONE in the industry could have told them that wasn't going to happen. But they weren't fired and we didn't get bonuses because the company didn't meet projections. And so it goes.

There is a bright side to some of this. A lot of UK companies are now onshoring again. The continued bad support in India, lack of technical skill, etc has resulted in so many complaints that companies are now bringing things back to the UK.

Hopefully the USA won't be too far behind.

Good luck in the job search, hopefully you'll find something fast.

As long as it took us to figure out we don't have to buy poorly made cars, it might take a long time to figure out we don't have to accept second rate tech support.

Dan, I wonder if you work for the same company a close friend of mine works for. They are an extremely large company & had the same meeting.

Dan, sorry to hear about your situation. I work in IT for a large company as well and we have been experiencing waves of staff reductions too. Increased outsourcing to India is a goal of management.

Your attitude during this upheaval is admirable.

Oh, kidbananas, I know we did (smile).

Only been there a little over 2.5 years and they have outsourced left and right since the latest management team took over.

We were all overbooked after the last wave of layoffs, now the survivors are trying to figure out what they are supposed to do now that most of us are being let go.

What is sad is that single mothers, pregnant women, folks with 20 plus years and people that had just recovered with a new job after the latest recession, all were let go, just to pump their stock.

The company, once considered one of the best places in the US to work, that shouted its moral standards and ethics, has really flopped in the past 3 years. Not a shining example any longer.

Seeing that you're in Milwaukee, what do you game and are you interested in a small group of us that do? Send me private mail if you do and are.

Best wishes for your friend, let him know to stop by and speak to me.

Dan

Best of luck, Dan.

Sounds like another Nortel.

Dan, I am sorry this has happened to you. All the best to you and positive thoughts for finding employment soon.

And… how long before that company's support starts running scams for extra protection as has been reported happening with Dell home PC support?
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Tim

I feel for you. Got laid off in August and was lucky to find a new place by the November.

Usual story, IT work all to be outsourced. They got through 350 of the 600 to go and suddenly realised the new supplier didn't have a clue.

Do not be suprised if RWE sell off Npower in the UK.

Has anyone ever been told that they're to train their off-shore replacements?

Dan

Dan…

Did anyone ask, "How many upper level executives have been laid off?"…

Did anyone ask…"Who is getting the "performance bonus" for this idea?"

My suggestion…copy and document EVERYTHING about their systems that you can…fill those flash drives full….then the week before you leave, hand them a presentation letter, and business card and flyer announcing yours as a "Business solutions/IT consultant" touting the experience that you have with "exactly the IT systems they are using"….

Discuss with them a "monthly consulting retainer fee"….

Hopefully the USA won't be too far behind.

Don't bet on it…

Dan…I worked for Anthem almost five years ago, and believe it or not, same thing happened…Check out my Tales from Work stories about "The "DUDE!" Company"…

They still haven't recovered from it…and it serves them right…

But the IT manager got her million dollar bonus and her golden parachute….

Thanks all for comments.

Here there seems to be a total disconnect from senior management and the working bulls that have to deal with the fall out from these sorts of practices once the ax has fallen and we all leave.

I personally have no hard feelings, this is just the way it works with capitalism; maxizing profit to reward senior management and the share holders, while pushing down as hard as possible to minimize costs (labor). If a company can hire unskilled/experenced workers in India, then they have the right to do so. Not sure I'd agree with the ethics, but then I don't make a 6 or 7 figure income, with a golden parachute if I get axed.

Difference in the past 20-30 years is that so many companies have moved from making a profit by way of building "stuff" to sell, that required physical locations and employees, to a model where it is all about moving money around, with fewer employees needed as jobs are off-shored or eliminated.

Again, no beef with reality.

Yet, I do wonder where it all ends. I am only a few years from possible retirement and think I'll make it (barely). What do the folks in the generation behind me do though or my grandchildren when they are of working age?

Something to think about.

Dan

Has anyone ever been told that they're to train their off-shore replacements?

Oh yes.

I was required to provide ann the documentation which was easy… and attend a 3 'Knowledge Transfer Session' to hand over our Data Hub and Warehouse

Oh how I laughed.

Then I cried whn it became apparant it was me in a room, the facilitator from the third party company and my replacement in India who was actually on a train on her way home from work!!

I asked how they planned to follow what I said but a recording session was enough to satisfy the requirements supposedly. Turns out this was sufficient. Only to find later my replacement had only been at their company 2 weeks and didn't even know their systems, let alone ours.

Did it all as required and then we did a time as Primary Support then Secondary Support. Boy were they useless.

Eventually they twigged how to handle the mundane parts but I know full well if it ever came to system changes and reconciliation failures they'll struggle.

Sure, they'll get there in the end… but by that time the company could go to the dogs, and they are welcome to it.

Not bitter at all.