The Official "Unemployed" Thread

[Stella]

or a deeper group for commiseration and drinking!

and yes...the economy sucks and though I have a job (sorry if I am posting here innapropriately and if it offends), we have a general manager that looks at the bigger picture and said outward to everyone in this building in a town hall format a year and a half ago, "we will sink or swim together. No one is going to eat steak while others are eating ramen. We'll all either eat steak together or we'll all eat hotdogs, but no one is going to be starving and no one is going to be higher on the hog than anyone else during this!"...and we have had some months where we had our belts pretty tight during this...my cushion I had built disapated pretty quickly and there have been a couple times where I had to choose who to pay and who I could float till the next month on paying....so I understand completely.

The mentality of your GM is uncommon.  Good on him/her!

[LMT]

I got my final paycheck today.  It was supposed to come 2 weeks ago, but the Red Cross screwed up and only paid me for 60 hours of vacation and somehow missed the other 22. Still no cobra paperwork.  Can't do it anyway, costs too much.

[fastwin]

I've only had two jobs since 1978 and I wonder if working that long at a job actually plays against you when a potential employer looks at your app or resume. So many folks hop around from job to job these days even before the economy went in the dumpster. I wonder if they see a lengthy employment in your past and think poorly of you? I guess I'm old school and think it shows reliabity and stability, has that changed?

[Grampa]

big hugs to all going through this..... been there ..... done that.

[somegirl]

big hugs to all going through this..... been there ..... done that.

+1

I've only had two jobs since 1978 and I wonder if working that long at a job actually plays against you when a potential employer looks at your app or resume. So many folks hop around from job to job these days even before the economy went in the dumpster. I wonder if they see a lengthy employment in your past and think poorly of you? I guess I'm old school and think it shows reliabity and stability, has that changed?

It will depend on what field you are in, but in my industry it would be fine to be with a single employer for that long, but someone hiring would prefer to see that you had made some advancements in your specific position or at least in your role and responsibilities over that time.

[Triple J]

It will depend on what field you are in, but in my industry it would be fine to be with a single employer for that long, but someone hiring would prefer to see that you had made some advancements in your specific position or at least in your role and responsibilities over that time.

+1

[fastwin]

One job I was the co-owner. Nowhere to really go from there. Second job I worked for State District Criminal Court judges. I ran the courts for them and answered only to the elected judges. It was a politically appointed position. Sort of a chief of state/manager/coordinator position. I wasn't necessarily the boss of the DAs, or District Clerks, or Probation Dept. or the Sheriffs Office (they provided the bailiffs) but all of them went through me to coordinate the docket, trials, hearings, etc... everything. There was no advancement... except go to law school and become a judge. Not doing that!

That's it. Two jobs in all those years.

[herm]

i have been effectively out of work since October 2007...
originally by choice, but if i had looked into a crystal ball i never would have given up the job i had.

i did not look hard enough at first, and then i looked so hard that it started stressing me out.

right now i am not looking. i have a (new to me) old house that needs all the attention i can give it before winter comes.

[fastwin]

2007 just sucked for me too. I crushed 4 neck vertebrae in an accident and it pretty much took out that whole year for me. Then the fun hit with the economy in the dumpster right after that. In fact the fun has yet to end! Ugh, I look forward to the turn around and I don't see the government helping. It's a worldwide problem and how can any US presidency solve that?

[Fresh Pants]

Suppose I should post up here.


Stella, maybe we can poke and prod (not like that) each other into doing that furniture thing we talked about waay back when (I know I haven't really made headway on it on my own). Or something.

Someone already beat me to the "bicycle/coffee shop" idea (Salvagetti).

[Stella]

Pants, when you're back, we can figure it out. 

It's becoming more clear that I have to do my own thing.  The job posting sites I joined are sending me jobs that aren't relevant to my experience.  But maybe I should apply for those engineering and medical jobs....   hmmmm    Stella, M.D., M.E.

[cyrus buelton]

Still no cobra paperwork.  Can't do it anyway, costs too much.

COBRA is ungodly expensive. I haven't quite figured out why. I remember when I graduated college, I didn't have a job, and that is when my parents health insurance booted me from the plan.

I didn't want them to even think about paying it while I job searched as I thought I didn't need insurance, but of course they did. Never once used it during that 7 month period. The premium was just so damn high, I am sure a cheaper alternative could have been sourced.

[fastwin]

Career Builder would send me the most f#@ked up jobs that had absolutely nothing to do with my experience. Ahhh... a phlebotomist?? WTF?? Maybe because I worked with attorneys at the courthouse they thought I was a blood sucker? A tax attorney?? Hmmm, don't you need a law degree for that? Needless to say Career Builder and I went our separate ways.

[ZLTFUL]

Pants, Stella...y'alls got me intrigued. I happen to be a pretty fair carpenter. Mostly cabinetry but for the last 6 or 7 years, my Christmas gifts to family have been woodworking projects. Cutting boards, wine racks, TV stands...I have also made pieces each year for a charity furniture auction we have locally that have all sold rather well.

It's not my love but then I doubt I will ever have the means to own an exotic motorcycle and automobile dealership.

[SacDuc]

Pants, Stella...y'alls got me intrigued. I happen to be a pretty fair carpenter. Mostly cabinetry but for the last 6 or 7 years, my Christmas gifts to family have been woodworking projects. Cutting boards, wine racks, TV stands...I have also made pieces each year for a charity furniture auction we have locally that have all sold rather well.

It's not my love but then I doubt I will ever have the means to own an exotic motorcycle and automobile dealership.

If anyone wants to talk about what it is like to actually make furniture for a living send me a PM. My short answer is that its almost impossible no matter how good you are, the overhead is ungodly, the up front investment is worse, the hours are long. Oh yeah, then you actually have to run the business, do accounting, advertise, bid, design, draft, sell sell sell, go to trade shows, install, deliver, glad hand, etc. When would you be in the shop actually making product? You can sleep next week, right? Did I mention that all of your materials are commodities and subject to wild price fluctuations?

I'm not trying to piss on anybody's parade, but your business plan should be written up very very carefully before you invest dollar one.

sac