Laid Off After More Than 30 Years

Sending my support too , MDs . I'm sorry this happened to you . I'm wishing you the best and hope that better things lie ahead .

Hi MDs,

Glad your friends at work are being supportive. Still sucks though. I bet you get a way better job pretty soon.

Iain

Damn. I am glad you have some financial stability. But that is a hard thing to face and I very much get it, that seeing them pack your things would be triggering. you ain't dead yet, but leaving behind an empty space like that....
have you made any plans on how to move forward? it is probably a bit early for that... I just notice how much it helps me to have a couple of ideas. It doesn't feel so stuck that way.
thinking of you

Hey MD folks. So sorry to hear you got laid off ... that sucks a lot, especially since there isn’t much you can do but try and find something new. I’m glad it felt good to have the finality of the issue resolved though; having it hang over your head and be unsure is a awful feeling.

Fingers crossed you find something new quickly and that is not soul draining!! We are rooting for you! Take gentle care in the meantime - safe hugs coming your way if y’all want them <3

- Wolf

Thank you, NewSunRising, Iain, Asti, Wolf....much appreciated.

We don't have any plans yet. Focusing now on self-care, stability, and tying up loose ends.

MDs

Hugs, if wanted, and VERY sorry to hear about this!

We are not a litigious sort, but the body's age... is there any reason to believe you'd been picked on because age?

Certainly there's a lot of this crap going on- some of it understandable, some of it less so, and in our case, our employer closing an entire facility, using the interruption due to Corona, as an opportunity to do what they been wanting to do. We lost our job, along with several hundreds of other people. Like you, we're not so bad off for the short term- but we gotta make plans or we'll be in deep kimchee, eventually.

So sorry to hear about this- not too far from you in age, and the idea of trying to go back in the workforce eventually can be daunting when you're staring 60 in the face. supposed to be thinking of winding down, but large corporations don't care.

Hoping things aren't too stressful for you, and this is just a springboard for something better, for all of us that have gotten t-boned by 2020.

Nope, it's not an age thing. Layoffs were across the age and tenure spectrum.

Those terminated need to sign a non-litigation agreement in order to receive the severance package. Since part of our job involved drafting and processing contracts, we understand the reason for this.

We want and need the money, so we will sign the agreement and abide by its terms. We harbor no ill will, and out of respect for our own well-being, we will take the high road.

Thanks for your support,

MDs

Yes MD, one step at a time. I'm really glad to read your approach. It's happening everywhere and obviously they would have preferred not to lay you off. Sometimes life develops in a direction that has more possibilities than before. I'm sending the most positive vibes I can your way.

Thanks, Johnny-Jack. Your encouragement and support mean a lot to us.

MDs

Despite having a succession of one good day followed by one bad day, we're making progress. It will help us to review our progress here, since we can see it concretely.

- We received our final paycheck for the first two weeks after layoff; this paycheck was provided in lieu of two weeks' notice.
- We received our payout for our unused PTO (about 20 days).
- We signed the separation agreement that entitles us to an additional payout based on how many years we were employed.
- We contacted the outplacement service with which our employer has contracted. The outplacement service's primary client is the employer; the employee is the secondary client. Conversation with our assigned coach is pending.
- We decided not to continue the group life insurance that had been provided by our employer. The existing plan was only effective until our date of termination. Continuing the plan would have been enormously expensive.
- We had a preliminary conversation with our own insurance agent, who also assists us with auto and homeowner's insurance. The agent sent us a preliminary quote, and we will have a follow-up conversation next week.
- Both our T and our brother have told us that because of our particular circumstances, life insurance may not be necessary. Our agent mentioned this possibility in passing. We agree with our T and our brother, and we'll address the situation when we speak with our agent again.
- We received an informational packet and application from our COBRA administration vendor, and we read the packet thoroughly. We still had about 10 questions, so we called them this evening, and they answered our questions satisfactorily.

Deep breath.

We can do this.

MDs