Lost My Job Today

[Neutron]

Well, I saw this coming two weeks ago when they reorganized IT. I was laid off today. I am in middle-career IT. I was doing desktop support but I have server skills. If anyone in the Dallas/Ft.Worth area knows of anyone hiring for IT please let me know.

 

I sure hope I don't have to send my truck back to the bank.... Right now my priority is on finding a new job so that I can help support my wife and child.

[hockeypro1411]

Sorry to hear that man. It's always tough to lose a job. Look at this as an opportunity to find an even better one. Good Luck!

[Jubei69]

Sorry to hear that man, I had friends who were laid off in the past couples years here in Dallas. 2 found work with Timewarner and another one is working for Monitronics, they all do customer service work. If you aren't able to find a job right away, and your unemployment benefits aren't sufficient enough for you to keep your house, car and living expenses; you may want to try one of them and do those customer services job, till you are able to find a IT job. My friends like their jobs at Timewarner, the pay is decent. Myr friends thought they would only work at Timewarner as a temp job, till something better came along; but non of them have left Timewarner, because they say they like it there.

[tomasg921]

Im about to be in your same situation. They are just starting to re-organize the IT dept and i got a feeling im going to be looking for a new job soon. I'm only 24 but i have a wife and 2 kids to support. Thankfully, i have enough in the bank to last a couple of months without working but still need to get on with finding a good job here in California.

[Neutron]

I'm 29 (30 in a few months) with a wife and kid and I hear ya on that. They gave me 2 weeks of severance pay which they said is the company norm. I have that with this week's pay and then unemployment starts.

[Zembonez]

Sorry to hear about your misfortune there. Hopefully something comes your way quickly!

[ajcain79]

Sorry to hear that. Economy sucks now. I've been off work since November '09. Luckily, we lived below our means and we can survive on unemployment insurance. (in addition to the wife's income) I'm 30 with wife and two kids. Just got my degree back in May and then laid off a few months later.

 

Hopefully you can take advantage of your free time and be with your kids more. That's what I do, but playing Mr. Mom gets old after awhile.

 

Hang in there.

[SoCalChris]

Similar situation here, except I quit. Boss was having me work pretty much daily from about 7am-1am for the last several months (I was salaried, so no OT). Then I got my review in January, and had a negative write up in it because I wasn't able to finish a project on time(Because my 6 month old daughter was in the hospital for four days with a 106.9 fever, which my boss knew about). I basically told him to go F himself at that point, and walked out on them. Now I've started a business cleaning out foreclosed homes, and maintaining them until they sell. I'm also doing some photography work on the side, and loving every minute of it.

 

I'm making more money than I was, am not stuck in a dark cubicle all day, get to see my five kids a whole lot more, and only report to myself. Look at this as a great opportunity, not a big disaster.

 

I'm 29, have five kids (With #6 due in a few months), and had a pretty high paying job as a computer programmer.

[weymard]

Very sorry for you, I hope you will find a new job quickly

[jf781]

I'm in IT as well and we cut our company by about 40% last may and thankfully I made the cut. I'm not sure what your job market is like down there but I've noticed it has started to pick up around my area (eastern Iowa) and it seems we are always a year behind the national trend.

 

Start looking on dice, career builder, monster...(only if your really desperate), and get in touch with some local head hunters. Might only be temp work but it will help strengthen your resume plus will show future employers that your motivated. Another thing that I found out is to talk with your previous HR team. Sometimes they know other HR people who work at companies that are hiring. This worked out for one of the IT guys we let go back in May.

 

Just do what you can to get your name out there and good luck, keep your head up.

[gmowner4life]

Sorry to hear that. Good luck out there. It seems like IT is always a quick fix, then you realize you need them when you're trying to do an upgrade or something similar.

[SilveradoWV]

I'm in IT also, it seems to have a little different pattern for hiring and letting go than some other fields, hopefully you'll get a new job soon. Good Luck!

[jdubya]

It amazes me to see all of you IT guys getting let go. I remember when I was in college the big talk was that IT was going to be the job of the future and that "we need IT guys"...

 

I guess it doesn't help that our government for the last 16 years has rewarded companies for sending jobs out of the country. Do you remember the talk that "we are in a global economy now"? All that did is leave us behind and in debt to china.

 

Now the talk is that we need people in health care. What happens when the population surge from the baby boomers pass and we have too many doctors and nurses?

[nootron69]

Well, I saw this coming two weeks ago when they reorganized IT. I was laid off today. I am in middle-career IT. I was doing desktop support but I have server skills. If anyone in the Dallas/Ft.Worth area knows of anyone hiring for IT please let me know.

 

I sure hope I don't have to send my truck back to the bank.... Right now my priority is on finding a new job so that I can help support my wife and child.

 

I am sorry to hear that. From one Nootron to another Neutron, I wish you a speedy re-employment. On a bright note, you are in a large enough metro area that there should be better job opps than say, here in Harrisburg area of PA! You will do well for your family AND your truck! Don't worry until it is time to worry!

[csheatz]

Sorry to hear about that. Its very scary to have to look at unemployment. Even more so when its less than what you are making, doesnt matter how much you have saved up it doesnt make it any easier. Last year I had to take a 10% paycut and go from 50-60 hours a week to 40. It ended up being about a 25% paycut when it was all over, my company went from just under 300 employees to less than 40. Luckly we never lived off my OT, and I was one of the few that kept working. I now do a lot more than I was hired to do but I am happy to work! We are starting to really get going again and there is talkes of returning our lost pay. (Michigan automotive)

 

My wife works at a local bank, and they have been having a hard time of late. They are in danger of being shutdown at any time from the FDIC. The worst part is that they showing a profit in their deposits, and interest/investment accounts. Just their loans are in the crapper. She has already cleaned her desk off and brought her person things home, its just a waiting game. Once FDIC steps in my wife will work another 60 days to 6 months with a FDIC rep to change everything over and then she would be done! It sucks just waiting and not knowing if and when.