View Full Version : Anyone’s work being affected by coronavirus?
I’m in international transportation so it definitely is. China coming back 10 days later than planned has affected shipments going out, us getting needed paperwork, lots of vessel sailing cancellations.
We’re waiting to see what happens when China comes back on Monday.
I was reading just today about the just-in-time delivery being interrupted and supplies running low. It will be interesting to see how long this lasts and the impact on world commerce.
Yes.
We have implemented extra patient contact protocols, had extra training, and our infectious disease control team is doing extra training and drills as well.
One of our young single guys is out sick all week. The joke is he was at the bar with a Chinese girl and he thought she said, "Yee hah!" and that she was really into him, but what she really said was, "Wuhan", where she is from, and now he has coronavirus.
If you can't laugh at work it makes for a long day.
If you can't laugh at work it makes for a long day.
I missed the JOKE part!
Yes, and in a good way: the company now ASKS us to work from home if we have something as little as a weak simple cold and sneeze once.
That said, I do not want to sound as someone who is superficially happy of a situation that has brought griefs to the families whose loved ones have died because of the virus.
Still no changes at work. Still a policy that only managers can work from home.
We would have to be issued laptops to work at home. Only supervisors on up have laptops they can take home.
Yes, it's affecting my work---my germaphobe boss is in high freakout mode.
Yes, it's affecting my work---my germaphobe boss is in high freakout mode.
That must provide some entertainment!
We are getting hand sanitizers installed. I asked the boss if I get infected at work and have to be quarantined is that worker's comp and a suck-up butted into the conversation and said, "No you can't prove you got it at work. It could have been at the grocery store. You would have to use up all your sick and vacation time." He never did answer my question.
I asked if people could work from home on another forum I frequent. A number of people responded that the job they do could be done from home, but their employer refuses to consider it, even if people were ordered to quarantine.
Both my current and previous employer have most people being able to work from home as a major component of their business continuity plans. Towards that end they are testing the viability of our systems to handle this by having everyone work from home tomorrow. It'll be interesting to see how that goes.
My previous employer got to test this out when superstorm Sandy hit and the several thousand people who worked in the corporate headquarters offices in lower Manhattan could not go to the office for several weeks. Mostly it worked fine. A couple of lessons learned from that were that we needed more redundancy of computer systems, and to not put the backup generator in the basement of the building.
Telecommuting is too long in coming; there are many, many jobs that could be done remotely.
Telecommuting is too long in coming; there are many, many jobs that could be done remotely.
Serious question - how many people can truly handle telecommuting successfully, ie, need the sense of others sharing the space and a visible supervisor?
Serious question - how many people can truly handle telecommuting successfully, ie, need the sense of others sharing the space and a visible supervisor?
I think it’s more a question of the employers wanting to keep a close eye on the worker bees.
Telecommuting is too long in coming; there are many, many jobs that could be done remotely.
We're having the daily Emergency Ops review/coordination meeting today almost entirely via Skype Business, which:
a) limits exposure opportunities for the team here working on the problem
b) saves a huge amount of travel time for people, since half of them have to take boats or planes to get to the EOC otherwise
c) let's me have my own, better, coffee :-)
Serious question - how many people can truly handle telecommuting successfully, ie, need the sense of others sharing the space and a visible supervisor?
Having done both I agree this is a real issue. When I was younger and single the thought of working from home 5 days a week would've been dreadful. I had a lot of other young coworkers that I considered friends. We hung out outside of work as well. Now that I'm neither young nor single it's great working from home although I do occasionally miss the excitement of going downtown and being surrounded by busy people.
Serious question - how many people can truly handle telecommuting successfully, ie, need the sense of others sharing the space and a visible supervisor?
In my brief editing career, I handled limited telecommuting with enthusiasm. I'm trustworthy, the work was entirely do-able from home, I don't need to be baby-sat, there was no commute, and if I needed to connect with others, there was email. I think a lot of us, perhaps especially the introverts among us, would thrive as telecommuters.
I LOVED not going into this office and dealing with all the politics. I was rarely interrupted, so I got more done in less time. However, it is not for everyone. A coworker was easily distracted or disciplined. He needed the strict structure of the office.
It appears that domestic travel bans aren’t going to be needed. People are doing it themselves. SO works for one of the big hotel brands. A month ago their flagship hotel here was fully booked for next week. As of yesterday their bookings for next week were at 30% with more cancellations happening every day. I assume this is happening all over the country. An awful lot of hotel workers aren’t going to be earning much money until the situation improves.
Not near as much as others who've posted. I work in a community bank, so the wild stock market this week is what is affecting us the most. The lending EVP announced rate loan rate changes due to the Federal Reserve cutting rates Tuesday. We've also reviewed our pandemic response plan (lots of hand sanitizer out in the branches).
Just saw pictures posted on social media of Port of Los Angeles- Empty. Just a few containers in an “empty” stack. One truck dropped off 1, no other trucks, no ships, no containers stacked to be delivered. Since the west coast is being (relatively) hardest hit, I’m imagining ports of Seattle and Oakland either already do, or will soon, look the same.
And I think my brother and SIL are on that Carnival cruise ship from Hawaii, being held off the coast of San Francisco while they test passengers for the corona virus....
Chicken lady
3-7-20, 7:28pm
Yikes!
i hope your family is ok.
i just got notice from my job to prepare to teach remotely.
so, I teach pottery. I actually asked my oldest class what they would want that to look like. They said “well, if you get some warning, we could all take home clay.” I mean, seriously, should I gave them carrying their clay back and forth?
A friend knows someone on that cruise boat off the CA coast. He says they did not send enough kits to test everyone and they are getting little information
Wow this sounds like a catastrophe movie more and more. I live in Europe close to a quarantined entire state (Italy. I live in Germany) for the moment nothing like that in Germany although in this region only they're have been 160 cases. We still go to the office. Only suspect people are asked to work from home...or people who sneeze a couple times too much. Schools are still open for the moment. In Italy- an entire state has now schools closed.
Many countries are using "don't test, don't tell".
Many countries are using "don't test, don't tell".
None more so than the U.S.
Trump announced at the CDC "Anyone who wants a test can have one." Tell that to health care professionals who have been exposed to known victims and still can't get tested.
gimmethesimplelife
3-8-20, 3:14pm
Very timely topic, Tradd.
Normally this would be my peak season and going into the season until just this past few days overtime was available, pretty much as much as I was wiling to take on. Now we have had some large cancellations out of nowhere - due to the virus and associated fear - and now I find myself with unexpected time off.
Taking advantage of my time off to spend a couple of days in Los Algodones, Mexico. I want to stock up on meds and herbal immunity boosters at the health food store in town - the6 often have wonderful herbs from Chiapas State in far south Mexico. Also want to get my teeth cleaned before things may get worse with this virus so I can keep up my investment in my teeth but at human, non-American prices. Also will pick up two dental night guards, much less expensive in Mexico.
This may well be it for me for traveling this year - I have debated spending the time I was going to spend in Thailand - or Morocco which I briefly considered returning to - in New Mexico. I might just take a breather in Las Cruces or Deming or some smallish town/city in the New Mexico desert.
But to get back to your ?, yes, I have just been impacted job-wise by this virus and I have no idea how things will unfold going forward. Good thing I have been saving money and have not really raised my standard of living since being promoted. Rob
gimmethesimplelife
3-8-20, 3:19pm
It appears that domestic travel bans aren’t going to be needed. People are doing it themselves. SO works for one of the big hotel brands. A month ago their flagship hotel here was fully booked for next week. As of yesterday their bookings for next week were at 30% with more cancellations happening every day. I assume this is happening all over the country. An awful lot of hotel workers aren’t going to be earning much money until the situation improves.Hourly hotel workers here in Phoenix that I know that work on Airport Row - a strip of 44th Street here in Phoenix very close to the airport featuring a number of large, business-traveler oriented airport hotels - have had their hours cut back. I don't know how this is going to play out going forward as tourism and the airport are the dominant employers in my neighborhood. Not looking good at the moment. In a worst case scenario as far as employment goes, however, many of these people have family in Mexico or points south they can return to for a place to sleep and some food - not all are at risk of homelessness, thankfully. Rob
gimmethesimplelife
3-8-20, 3:24pm
Serious question - how many people can truly handle telecommuting successfully, ie, need the sense of others sharing the space and a visible supervisor?Interesting question. What I do can't really be telecommuted other than for basic end of day shift closing reports and any client complaints/issues (the paperwork regarding such, I mean).......and even though I'm a hard core introvert, I'm not sure telecommuting is a good fit for me personally. I really do appreciate the structure of being required to be on site and that working lends to my life. I also believe this is a big reason that some folks in lower income neighborhoods go down the wrong road(s) - the lack of structure in their lives. Rob
Hubs teaches motorcycle safety classes on the weekends, one of the people he teaches with was quarantined on a cruise ship so he had to take on an extra class. That's about the extent of our impact so far.
I think the biggest thing about telecommuting is that you don't have to keep up appearances. When you've done your work you can do a crossword puzzle and wait for more work to come along, you don't have to arrange your pencils like a flower bouquet, offer to empty the wastebaskets or take over someone else's ignored sh*t work in order to look like a team player. Not having office dynamics is a godsend.
I think the biggest thing about telecommuting is that you don't have to keep up appearances. ....
I've discovered I don't even need to wear pants for the early morning status videoconference :-)
Just yesterday, IT and executive ask who in my dept didn’t already have access to work at home and has internet at home.m
Back story: I had gotten rid of my AT&T internet in October as it was slower than that through my Verizon Wireless unlimited plan. I’ve done just about everything off my iPhone since then, with occasionally tethering MacBook to iPhone. Well, I’ll have internet at home on Thursday. $50/month (old service was $40) and faster. I ordered it online so I’m getting a $100 gift card. I’ll be glad to have it again anyway. I listen to too much streaming audio and I was always going over limit and getting throttled.
Work doesn’t have enough laptops, so they sent us links to download the bit of software needed to access our industry software. Quite a change from their most recent stance. The plague has made them change their mind.
I've had 5 video conference meetings so far today, didn't have to leave the house. I could get used to this!
happystuff
3-11-20, 7:57am
My household still trudges off to work every day. No options for work-at-home.
My employer just announced that all business travel is suspended until further notice and that we're strongly encouraged not to attend any meetings with groups of more than 20 people. Further, after the success of last week's "work from home" test, all employees who want to can work from home until further notice.
catherine
3-12-20, 12:31pm
I just emailed my client asking to substitute my in-person patient interview with a video interview. He'll agree.
My dil who works remotely just had a trip to LA canceled next week.
So relieved!
Simplemind
3-12-20, 3:04pm
We were assured that 911/dispatch was screening the circumstances of calls so we would know if symptoms were present. Went to a call where Fire and EMT's had already left and Police were waiting for the ME. Asked if symptoms/circumstances were passed on before going in and the officers just shrugged their shoulders saying nobody mentioned. We always take universal precautions but we are also volunteers and should have the option to pass if the first responders aren't confident.
We were assured that 911/dispatch was screening the circumstances of calls so we would know if symptoms were present.
That's what our dispatch is supposed to be doing as well. We've also been instructed to knock and ask from a distance about symptoms in anyone in the household, before barging in.
My wife just texted me and advised that all Ohio public and private K-12 schools will be closed for three weeks beginning Monday. Ohio has 5 confirmed cases with none known in our area.
rosarugosa
3-12-20, 5:37pm
My dog-walking gig has been suspended for a couple of weeks. SIL will be working from home, and my little buddy won't leave the house with me if she is home. I'm fine with taking a break actually, but DH and DSis both work at hospitals, so there is a valid concern with exposure in their workplaces.
Our St. Patrick's Day luncheon for customers has been cancelled.
Lloyds of London, the oldest insurance marketplace, has been transacting business in person daily in each underwriting "box" in the "room" at their building for their entire history. The underwriters sit in their box each morning as brokers come around and present that day's risks to them and negotiate policy terms. Those terms get finalized over lunch and then memorialized into policy documents during the afternoon. Tomorrow they are not opening up the room and everyone will have to do their business in the more modern way of using email and phones. As far as I'm aware this has not been done before. Lloyds leadership wants to learn what sort of impact it will have on the business if they have to implement this for any length of time. As an American insurance guy this is the way I've always done business but it will be quite a change for my London colleagues. It will be interesting to hear my coworkers' thoughts on this on our next monthly team call.
Lloyds of London, the oldest insurance marketplace, has been transacting business in person daily in each underwriting "box" in the "room" at their building for their entire history. The underwriters sit in their box each morning as brokers come around and present that day's risks to them and negotiate policy terms. Those terms get finalized over lunch and then memorialized into policy documents during the afternoon. Tomorrow they are not opening up the room and everyone will have to do their business in the more modern way of using email and phones. As far as I'm aware this has not been done before. Lloyds leadership wants to learn what sort of impact it will have on the business if they have to implement this for any length of time. As an American insurance guy this is the way I've always done business but it will be quite a change for my London colleagues. It will be interesting to hear my coworkers' thoughts on this on our next monthly team call.
Wow. How interesting. Please let us what your London coworkers think of it!
Took my MacBook into work today to make sure I could get onto the software we use. Turns out I can't get onto the "workspace" via Microsoft Remote Access. It couldn't figure it out since they were doing exactly what the software documentation said to do. They asked me to bring it in again tomorrow. IT was contacting the software developer for assistance.
I got my AT&T modem today. Got home, plugged it in, logged in, boom, and I have internet at home again. So much quicker than the old service. I'm very happy.
Lloyds of London, the oldest insurance marketplace, has been transacting business in person daily in each underwriting "box" in the "room" at their building for their entire history. The underwriters sit in their box each morning as brokers come around and present that day's risks to them and negotiate policy terms. Those terms get finalized over lunch and then memorialized into policy documents during the afternoon. Tomorrow they are not opening up the room and everyone will have to do their business in the more modern way of using email and phones. As far as I'm aware this has not been done before. Lloyds leadership wants to learn what sort of impact it will have on the business if they have to implement this for any length of time. As an American insurance guy this is the way I've always done business but it will be quite a change for my London colleagues. It will be interesting to hear my coworkers' thoughts on this on our next monthly team call.
Wow. How interesting. Please let us what your London coworkers think of it!
If I were to make predictions I'd guess two things. One, 2/3 of everyone involved will just take tomorrow off as a PTO day. And second, the people who do show up at work tomorrow and try to make it work will hate it. The whole Lloyds way of doing business is super civilized.
A Lloyds underwriter or broker's work day goes like this:
1. They spend the morning talking deals.
2. They go to lunch and verbally (or on bevnaps) finalize those deals.
3. They go back to the office and put them down on paper.
4. They meet up for drinks after work to confirm that the deals are done.
5. They go home, relax with their family or friends, and show up the next morning to do it all again.
None of them want to get roped into the 24/7 always on lifestyle that so many other white collar workers live. And I don't blame them. For their sake I hope that tomorrow's test doesn't end up becoming a longterm reality.
For what it's worth, back in the pre-internet days NYC, the hub of US insurance, had a much less formal but similar structure for how insurance underwriting happened. Basically all the key underwriters were known for having a favorite bar to hang out at every afternoon within a few blocks of William and John Streets in lower manhattan. Brokers all knew where everyone would be and would show up, buy the underwriter a beer, and present their accounts and try to get deals done. As soon as email became common in the early 90's that all fell by the wayside and now underwriters all sit chained to their desks pounding through as many email submissions as they can every day.
My manager is off her rocker again today. She is not handling the stress of the current situation very well. She and the supervisor went off at lunch in search of toilet paper. The regional executive, who has a very odd sense of humor and is always pranking everyone, just called looking for manager. I told him she was at lunch looking for TP. I thought it was pretty funny (she doesn’t keep enough at home and was caught short-didn’t tell him that). She calls me screaming how dare I tell him that. Mind you, one time I told him she was at lunch he called and he later told her I told him she was out buying marijuana at lunch (it’s legal here now). I’m sure I’m going to get chewed out when she’s back in the office.
She was screaming the moment she walked in the office yesterday.
Teacher Terry
3-13-20, 2:57pm
Traded, that sounds like a terrible place to work.
Chicken lady
3-13-20, 6:50pm
School.
nect week is spring break.
the following week will be a second week of spring break comprised of unused snow days.
the week after that will be distance learning supported by online instruction and resources which I must provide. I teach hands on classes.
the week after that we will hopefully come back.
About a third of the parents started keeping their kids home last week. Half of the remainder are arranging play dates with schoolmates and friends from other schools who are also out. ��
One employee was told he may have been exposed at his doctor's office, but he tested negative and will be back to work Monday. This prompted me to cancel a doctor's appointment I have next week.
The San Francisco library just sent me an email that they are closing down entirely until April 1st.
The San Francisco library just sent me an email that they are closing down entirely until April 1st.
We were at the library here today when they announced they would be closing at the end of today through April 16. It was very unexpected, with no prior notice.
Teacher Terry
3-13-20, 8:25pm
I canceled all my medical appointments and routine screenings. CL, how do they expect you to teach pottery online? The kids won’t have the equipment they need.
Chicken lady
3-13-20, 8:40pm
That is a very good question.
i actually managed to send clay home with six kids today. A little more warning and I would have done better.
my boss says I can schedule a window for parents to come by and pick up clay and tools. I can post instructional videos or step by steps and offer choices of completing a project or watching a video and giving feedback. I may require my studio class to lay out a plan for the remainder of the year taking into account drying times, glazing, and firings, and make sketches for their projects if they don’t have clay.
my modern pioneers should be starting seeds and making drop spindles. I may get them to do a project relating to self sufficiency in social distancing or tracking the resources they use and contemplating alternatives or something. Today I took in baby goats and we talked about goats and also about what one could do if one ran out of toilet paper.
We were at the library here today when they announced they would be closing at the end of today through April 16. It was very unexpected, with no prior notice.
I went yesterday and only saw a sign that all programs were cancelled. But the place was packed with patrons.
happystuff
3-15-20, 9:15am
I went yesterday and only saw a sign that all programs were cancelled. But the place was packed with patrons.
I got an email yesterday from ours stating that all programs were cancelled, but they would still be open for people to check out books/videos, etc.
Simplemind
3-15-20, 3:02pm
Our libraries in PDX closed last week. We were told not to return books we have until further notice. No late fees of course..
We got one day notice our library was closing so we checked out a bunch of books for us and mom.
Our library system is closed for at least a month, seeing how we're a veritable Petri dish up here.
Ebooks are still available, natch, and I have a Kindle full of reads. All good here.
Our movie theatres and restaurants just closed. You supposedly can still get take out at the restaurants, but not sure how long that can last.
Our libraries in PDX closed last week. We were told not to return books we have until further notice. No late fees of course..
SM, I didn't realize you are over in PDX...I'm over in the Couve.
catherine
3-16-20, 12:28pm
You supposedly can still get take out at the restaurants, but not sure how long that can last.
My son just got furloughed from the restaurant he works for. They're closed until April 3 (at least). Such a bummer. My son's had a tough year. This restaurant just got taken over with new management, and so I feel bad for the new owner, who bought the place on a shoestring, has a small kid, and is probably going to really be hurting as a result of this, too.
Teacher Terry
3-16-20, 1:08pm
Catherine, it’s so hard for the workers that are affected. My kids are in the same situation. Some casinos have closed and more will probably too. Mine have a rough 2 years with my DIL having a baseball sized brain tumor 2 years ago. It hurt them financially between medical bills and not being able to work for a long time. They may have to move in with us.
Catherine, it’s so hard for the workers that are affected. My kids are in the same situation. Some casinos have closed and more will probably too. Mine have a rough 2 years with my DIL having a baseball sized brain tumor 2 years ago. It hurt them financially between medical bills and not being able to work for a long time. They may have to move in with us.
Terry, glad they have that option.
Catherine, my son in restaurant work says they are doing a lot of takeout for now but he is prepared to have them close; he is in same boat. So sorry for all of the restaurant workers.
My manager is an idiot. Stupid sheep.
It was all over the news here this morning that United is cancelling half of their flights in April and May. They’re HQ’d here in Chicago. Most cargo goes in the belly of passenger flights. I have a customer who has a shipment each Monday on United from Central America. I called them to tell them about the announced cancellations and that they should contact their shipper. Customer thanked me profusely for letting them know, even though they’re already talking to shipper. Manger overheard me on the phone and pulled me into her office when I was off the phone. I was told I was panicking and to calm down. I asked her what about being proactive was panicking? Crickets. I was told I was too independent thinking. Guess she wants people who don’t think.
She is freaking out. I like my job other than her.
We got an email over the weekend. Working from home is now mandatory.
Terry, glad they have that option.
Catherine, my son in restaurant work says they are doing a lot of takeout for now but he is prepared to have them close; he is in same boat. So sorry for all of the restaurant workers.
This may really usher in a new Age of Frugality like the Depression. My son was saying how he's been thinking about all the beers he had after work and other "frivolous" expenditures he made. Already, he doesn't want to be caught like that again.
And back in the Depression, family had to rely on family as TT's experience is showing. Restaurant/casino work offers little in the way of paid leave, so it is very tough for those workers. I wonder how this experience will change policy.
My manager is an idiot. Stupid sheep.
It was all over the news here this morning that United is cancelling half of their flights in April and May. They’re HQ’d here in Chicago. Most cargo goes in the belly of passenger flights. I have a customer who has a shipment each Monday on United from Central America. I called them to tell them about the announced cancellations and that they should contact their shipper. Customer thanked me profusely for letting them know, even though they’re already talking to shipper. Manger overheard me on the phone and pulled me into her office when I was off the phone. I was told I was panicking and to calm down. I asked her what about being proactive was panicking? Crickets. I was told I was too independent thinking. Guess she wants people who don’t think.
She is freaking out. I like my job other than her.
She sounds like Trump: give the customers a false sense of security to protect revenue/financial interests. I would take her accusation of being "too independent-thinking" as a compliment.
ApatheticNoMore
3-16-20, 2:19pm
This may really usher in a new Age of Frugality like the Depression. My son was saying how he's been thinking about all the beers he had after work and other "frivolous" expenditures he made. Already, he doesn't want to be caught like that again.
or alternately hoarding. Why hoard if stores are always open and if you don't buy something today you can always do it any other day. But if stores are maybe suddenly not open (and not just groceries but good luck buying a shirt, getting a haricut etc.). And all those unread books at home that were just taking up space, suddenly seem like hey maybe not so bad an idea to hold on to afterall.
She sounds like Trump: give the customers a false sense of security to protect revenue/financial interests. I would take her accusation of being "too independent-thinking" as a compliment.
Oh, I definitely am. She’s not issuing anything to send to customers about the Europe travel ban. So am I just supposed to say nothing unless they ask? My customers have all told me they’re glad I’m even telling them “x might happen. Have your shipper check.”
iris lilies
3-16-20, 2:51pm
Oh, I definitely am. She’s not issuing anything to send to customers about the Europe travel ban. So am I just supposed to say nothing unless they ask? My customers have all told me they’re glad I’m even telling them “x might happen. Have your shipper check.”
Exactly. If she wants a consistent message going to customers, she needs to script it.
mschrisgo2
3-16-20, 3:11pm
SO glad I retired (almost) 3 years ago! Schools are closed, but my former colleagues, credentialed teachers, are required to be at school “for essential work.” This week that entails Cleaning Their Classrooms, from top to bottom. The district is having trouble sourcing supplies, so they are “encouraged” to bring them from home. Wow. Just Wow.
it is pretty much standard procedure that classrooms only get deep cleaned during the summer. So they are having to clean 8 months of dust and grime of the tops of cabinets, floors under furniture, etc.
As a side note, the union is proactively filing a notice of pending grievance if the district, in any way, penalizes teachers 65 and over who do not report to work. This is California, and the governor has said all 65 and over must “isolate.”
Teacher Terry
3-16-20, 4:51pm
Actually my DIL gets paid vacation but used it in January so not sure what she has left. She was a teacher in Poland but we won't recognize her degree. My son drives Uber despite having a engineering degree because of his disability and it is one of the few things that don't make his disability worse. Had it not been for her surgery they had the money saved to survive this type of crisis. They have always been frugal.
Our governor just announced that gatherings with more than 50 people are banned (not sure if there's a deadline). Our local library is closed for the rest of the month. The state university my daughter attends is having a 2nd week of spring break this week, then classes are all on-line the rest of the semester. No graduation ceremony. The dean told students to not come back to the town. The bank I work at is encouraging customers to use the drive-through, ATMs, ITMs and on-line banking. They may decide to close lobbies. No more in-person meetings - everything is conference call. No vendors, examiners or external auditors are allowed on-site. The CIO just got back from London, so he is working from home for the next two weeks. Public schools are closed by order of the county health department.
Not our work but we are in the middle of a big remodeling project. So far we have left drywall, tiling, painting, and plumbing installation. We are going to continue and isolate ourselves from the few workers. We will take it a day at a time. Talked it over with our general contractor.
We are checking our temp each morning and if it goes up, will postpone all work.
Simplemind
3-16-20, 9:19pm
An urgent request has been put out for Meals on Wheels because a significant amount of volunteers have quit due to virus concerns and they don't have enough drivers for the regular routes let alone the extra people that now need to be added since the dining rooms at the centers are closing.
At my Trauma Intervention job they asked us to go to 6 different schools today to assist those with anxiety as they showed up for their free meals. That is a head scratcher for me. Another post said they had made all these meals and only 20 people showed up for them.
Crazy times....
We are closing Saturdays. This does not impact my shift.
happystuff
3-17-20, 1:36pm
Yes. Got laid off about an hour ago. Online retail - no orders. Owner and supervisor will be doing whatever/everything to see if can weather this, but everyone else sent home and told to apply for unemployment. Online now trying, but website must be swamped... keep erroring out.
Sigh....
ApatheticNoMore
3-17-20, 1:49pm
Yes. Got laid off about an hour ago. Online retail - no orders. Owner and supervisor will be doing whatever/everything to see if can weather this, but everyone else sent home and told to apply for unemployment. Online now trying, but website must be swamped... keep erroring out.
sorry to hear that. any word on the other job you were being considered for? I know those things can take time.
Teacher Terry
3-17-20, 3:17pm
So sorry Happy.
I am so sorry Happystuff.
Yes. Got laid off about an hour ago. Online retail - no orders. Owner and supervisor will be doing whatever/everything to see if can weather this, but everyone else sent home and told to apply for unemployment. Online now trying, but website must be swamped... keep erroring out.
Sigh....
I'm so sorry.
We no longer offer customers coffee. They are supposed to keep out of the back office per corporate but not everyone will and local management will not enforce it.
All face to face classes at the college have been replaced with online delivery. Spring Break is now two weeks so that instructors have a week to convert their classes.
All the classes at college affected in that I have to change all three class schedules to accommodate the different dates, and the uncertainty of not knowing exactly when we will be back in session. Lots of extra unpaid work.
Teacher Terry
3-17-20, 6:03pm
Tybee, my university has done the same but luckily the only class I teach is a Pearson online class so nothing changed for me.
Fingers crossed for you, Terry--I just got an email from Pearson that their customer support has basically been removed--no more customer support functions as they have been told to work from home-- but hopefully, things will roll along okay in your class. My fingers are crossed for my classes which need Pearson to access their textbook.
I'm sorry your job ended, happystuff. I hope something turns up soon.
DW worked from home today, spending almost all of her time on coronavirus meetings. The building in which she works (and its partner buildings in other parts of the county) have been closed to the public except for the courts. In that building it's possible to go to the court section without meandering through the building or getting on an elevator.
There has been discussion in urban Minnesota of whether some people being held for low-level offenses like marijuana possession or for not coming up with bail might be released from detention to lower the number of people in those facilities. That has nothing to do with DW's job; it simply has come up as one of those "did we have to think about that before?" issues this situation is bringing up.
Teacher Terry
3-17-20, 7:22pm
Luckily Tybee my students have a textbook that’s not online. So far I haven’t needed anything from them. Since my technical skills are limited I hope everything goes smoothly.
happystuff
3-17-20, 7:27pm
Thank you, everyone. It took 6 hours, but I finally got a confirmed registration for unemployment. I let my contact, at the part time job I've been working towards, know that I got laid off and would be available any time for any work. I know they have to wait for my background check to clear, but hopefully it will do that soon. He texted me back that there would definitely be an opening come August, as someone was retiring.
The other reality check for me today was - how many people must be going through the same thing for the unemployment website to have been behaving the way it was! To loose that ultimate sense of "security" from an income-providing job during a pandemic like this!
Prayers to the world.
So sorry, happystuff.
My daughter works for the school system...out until April 15. She doesn't get paid if she doesn't work - and she was getting lots of overtime. She will be good for a while, as they live within their means with a cushion
Son and wife are a different story, sigh! This will bite them hard!
Governor Newsome just announced that CA schools will likely remain closed for the rest of the school year.
mschrisgo2
3-17-20, 11:23pm
My tutoring gig has ended, now that we have “Shelter in Place” orders. Disappointing, though I totally agree with the action. I really enjoyed working with my homeschooled student. Plus I will miss the extra money.
happystuff
3-18-20, 7:59am
My tutoring gig has ended, now that we have “Shelter in Place” orders. Disappointing, though I totally agree with the action. I really enjoyed working with my homeschooled student. Plus I will miss the extra money.
Maybe you can continue via Skype?
Although I work at a circulation desk in a library, I'm working from home as of two days ago. I'm helping our digital services librarian check the validity of some databases. It's downright weird because she said she doesn't expect me to spend 8 hours a day doing this. Also weird because I have a lot of downtime at work, so I really feel like I'm floundering around right now. Because the world situation is so stressful right now, I am having a LOT of trouble concentrating on work. I wonder if I'm alone.
Hubster works at a state agency. All staff were sent home to work online this morning. Only a few critical employees are allowed into the office. Right now, he is one of those.
I think my office would only close down if the local/state authorities forced us to close. Small office with few visitors.
Some employees are wearing gloves now. One who had cancer last year won't let anyone in his office. You have to stand in the doorway and talk to him from there. A second employee thought possibly exposed outside of work was back on the job after being tested. Some people are using vacation time to watch their kids who are out of school.
One who had cancer last year won't let anyone in his office. You have to stand in the doorway and talk to him from there.
EXCELLENT self-care :cool:
People wearing gloves scares me. Unless well trained in use of gloves, people are careless. They are protected and everyone else? Screwed. I have watched it too many times.
The other day I was chatting with a guy at the resort on Maui and as he was leaving he said ‘nice chatting with you. I’m derick.’ And instinctively he held out his hand. I was sitting on a beach chair by the pool and pulled my hands back while introducing myself. It was slightly awkward but he got it and wasn’t offended, just slightly embarrassed.
And earlier this evening we were at the front desk of the hotel putting in our breakfast orders. The restaurant is closed but they are making to go food for everyone. We had our order form and the front desk clerk offered a pen. I said ‘no, I do t want to potentially infect your pen’ and he offered a sanitizing wipe. I told him he could save it for the next person and he was fine with filling out the form for us. SO probably thinks I’m being neurotic but I’d rather be safe than sorry. And I’d rather have my behavior teach others to think about everything and be cautious. Watching my SO and MIL touch EVERYTHING this week has made me realize how unnatural it is to not make contact with every surface around us.
I don’t blame SO and MIL for touching everything. They are both the type of person for whom handrails were invented. But that doesn’t help calm me knowing that germs reside on everything people touch. There just aren’t enough sanitizing wipes in the world.
ApatheticNoMore
3-19-20, 11:19am
Well they moved us to slightly staggered shifts, which might only increase social distancing to a degree since our shifts will overlap some, so i think I will still end up seeing most people. I got assigned to work pretty standard hours so it's not a drastic change for me, and we're still working full time. At one point they were going to cram 3 of us in a smallish office but decided 2 was enough for now (like a bosses office size, that's what I mean by office here).
I work at a large church. Of course we have completely shut down. All the 12-step groups we rent space to are having to use Skype or Zoom to meet. My boss/pastor is worrisome. I'm watching him age. He's taking the whole congregation's spiritual life on his shoulders, coming up with a makeshift video service (our tech isn't strong enough to do live streaming), daily encouragements via email, all the visitations because the visiting pastor is in his 70s, THEN we had a death yesterday. We've already postponed one memorial. I am communication central here, and there's a lot. At least I am only one of 4 people here and it's a 60,000 sq. ft. bldg. So....I can go all day and hardly see anyone. But the phones! The emails! Aaaggghhhh!!
My p/t job, Weight Watchers, is doing a quick and miraculous switch to online only meetings. I have to totally hand it to corporate. I don't think any of them have slept for 5 days. It's very complicated; I've taken 2 trainings and participated in 3 Zoom calls in the last 2 days. We will be going live tonight with our first Zoom "workshop" (formerly called "meetings.")
Teacher Terry
3-19-20, 2:00pm
Kay, that sounds so stressful. Please take care of yourself.
Had a steady stream of job interviews and even made the final cut on one, but no job offer so far. Now it's nothing since Monday. Emailed my job coach asking for advice. no response so far. Going to work on my resume and make it clear I'm happy to interview and work remotely. I'm narrowing my search for remote positions for now.
I understand the circumstances, it's just frustrating.
The courthouse is closed to the public which means we have more phone calls and mail out more info.
People who are late on taxes have to mail them in.
We are seeing restaurants and fast food going to takeout and drive thru.
rosarugosa
3-19-20, 5:03pm
Had a steady stream of job interviews and even made the final cut on one, but no job offer so far. Now it's nothing since Monday. Emailed my job coach asking for advice. no response so far. Going to work on my resume and make it clear I'm happy to interview and work remotely. I'm narrowing my search for remote positions for now.
I understand the circumstances, it's just frustrating.
I'm sorry, Hana. What an extra challenging time to be looking for a job! I admire your self-discipline in sticking with your search efforts and I hope you get results soon!
We are caretaking a building we previously owned and forgot to move a hand sanitizer and its refills. So we took it now but when he went by the new owner complained the sale included the building contents and we had to take it back.
ApatheticNoMore
3-20-20, 12:32am
possibly going to work from home at our office. with the speed at which things are progressing if I say I'm out of a job next week it wouldn't surprise me, and at this point maybe I'd just lay around for year. Haha, crazy, since I pushed like heck to find work and then full time work, but I give up you know, I just give up. (My heart goes out to contractors now - it must be harrowing - it was for me when I had weird health symptoms and was a contractor, that were probably just due to toxic waste at that superfund site, and regardless certainly weren't killing me!)
But obviously that isn't the immediate plan as we're work from home. The industry, it is NOT one that is likely to go out of business now.
So many people don’t have a backstop. My sister is in the end stages of a gut bathroom redo. At this point all that’s left to do is tiling and install the fixtures. But the tile store is closed. And they aren’t sure they want the tile guy in their house every day for the next week. Maybe I’m a stupid softee but I encouraged her to do the tile work if they can get the tiles from the store since the tile guy will not likely have any work after this and could probably use the money.
We are also in the middle of a bathroom remodel. The store rushed all the supplies to our house and dumped them. The tile guy came at the same time as the painter (to do priming). They coordinated since both could not work at the same time. Weather is the only thing keeping them all rushing to complete the work. Got tile, paint, plumber, misc. Bet they have it done in less than 2 weeks. We stay away from them at least 6 feet and if any were coughing we would ask them to leave. But so far it is ok. (and I want the bathroom done.)
ApatheticNoMore
3-20-20, 11:49am
Californians ordered to stay home, plus local work at home laws passed as of yesterday kind of requiring work from home, but work does not have the capacity for that yet. So off to work I must go. I will bring my laptop so they can fix it up eventually for remote work (yes it is bring your own personal laptop. If I thought I'd be working off it for a job I would have bought a fancier one, it was just intended as a spare for personal use for which none of that is critical - note to self: don't be a cheapskate in the future).
Californians ordered to stay home, plus local work at home laws passed as of yesterday kind of requiring work from home, but work does not have the capacity for that yet. So off to work I must go. I will bring my laptop so they can fix it up eventually for remote work (yes it is bring your own personal laptop. If I thought I'd be working off it for a job I would have bought a fancier one, it was just intended as a spare for personal use for which none of that is critical - note to self: don't be a cheapskate in the future).
I had to do that with my personal laptop - a MacBook Air. They had to tweak a bit to get software to work as it’s meant for Windows machines.
mschrisgo2
3-20-20, 1:55pm
Starting next week, I will be tutoring my homeschooled student on Face Time. And 2 hours a day, Monday-Thursday. So it’s an increase in hours and I’ll make up what I lost this week in 2 weeks. I’m pleased to have the work, and I know he needs the contact. He has very high anxiety anyway, and all this virus stress on top of it isn’t good.
I'm sorry, Hana. What an extra challenging time to be looking for a job! I admire your self-discipline in sticking with your search efforts and I hope you get results soon!
If I don't hold on to my routine, I would spend the day on the couch watching cable news. Hoping some HR people are working from home and once everything goes back to normal I'll be the first one in for the in person interview
I'll be the first one in for the in person interview
I wish you the best in your job search, hana. I would, however, consider preparing for a phone or video interview. Just sayin'
We are going to make customers stay outside the building and give anything to them through one door but of course there are loopholes. Anyone giving us a cash or credit card payment gets to come in. I just cannot get away from dirty money.
We are going to make customers stay outside the building and give anything to them through one door but of course there are loopholes. Anyone giving us a cash or credit card payment gets to come in. I just cannot get away from dirty money.
Require them to give CC information when they place the order. this is a ridiculous way to do business right now!
Well, today was my birthday and it sucked even more than two years ago when I was in bed with the shingles actually on my birthday. :(
10% pay cut. Effective April and they will reassess in June. Everyone in the US, and I'm sure worldwide. Two people were laid off today in the warehouse. They hit corporate (accounting, etc.), as well. The only reason my department didn't get hit is that we were short one person. We had a gal leave in late January. Her replacement was supposed to start the 9th, but she was sick with the flu, and her starting date was changed to the 16th. Then her child's school was cancelled for three weeks, and she had to stay home to watch him. Single parent and no one else to help. But that helped as she would have been let go today.
The IL governor issued a "stay at home" order today, beginning tomorrow at 5pm, through April 7th. However, I'm in transportation, so considered "essential." We all got a letter from HR today to carry with us. We were given the choice to work from home, but with my 13" laptop screen, it would be difficult. I have two large monitors at the office, printer, etc, and so much easier to work from the office. We fall under logistics.
Copy of IL executive order: https://www2.illinois.gov/Documents/ExecOrders/2020/ExecutiveOrder-2020-10.pdf?fbclid=IwAR2tIs31MntRjJX2K-tqVapF30v1r9d1x5UL5L6aIGfCxrP2IK6MV2M8e8s
Require them to give CC information when they place the order. this is a ridiculous way to do business right now!
Not my call. The controller, who never touches cash, mandates that we take it. There are a variety of reasons customers insist on cash, including that some are tax cheats at a time when everyone should be paying into the social safety net. Others are admitted alimony cheats. They want no paper trail. I suspect some may be in the country illegally.
ApatheticNoMore
3-20-20, 7:51pm
Work from home starts for real on Monday, hope it all works out, since I've not worked from home at this job or had the option before.
dado potato
3-20-20, 8:26pm
I see that a few electric utilities are quietly "sequestering healthy employees", in effect, asking them to live at their job site.
Ugh. I told my husband that the only way this is working for me is that I get to come home, eat, sleep in my own house every night.
I see that a few electric utilities are quietly "sequestering healthy employees", in effect, asking them to live at their job site.
My SIL is one of those people. She’s an electrician for the utility that serves the St Louis area. It was optional. She’s getting paid double time, 24/7 for two weeks. Will be banking just over $30k. She’s not complaining. And her coworkers who don’t want to be there because they have family to care for are probably glad she’s willing to do it.
happystuff
3-21-20, 8:11am
Happy belated Birthday, Tradd. Glad you are still working and hope things improve for everyone!
rosarugosa
3-21-20, 5:23pm
Happy Birthday, Tradd! After this is all over, you should pick a "Tradd Day" and do something special for yourself!
Happy Birthday, Tradd! After this is all over, you should pick a "Tradd Day" and do something special for yourself!
Thank you! Actually, that’s not a bad idea! Dive - all I want to do is dive.
We got letters stating we work in an essential business in case we are pulled over by police. One of our business lines that is not essential is being suspended and the personnel there shifted to the essential side of the business. Since we are now overstaffed all overtime has been eliminated.
Today was lovely and quiet. Very few phone calls. Most of my customers are working from home, so it’s almost all emails.
I’m busy, though. Pretty much the only import person (supervisor does some) now, and I’m swamped, especially since stuff is shipping from China again.
More traffic on the roads than expected n
ApatheticNoMore
3-24-20, 12:31am
bf may lose his job, heaven knows what will become of any of us (and that's assuming we don't die :~)). Holding on to my job for now, working from home, on slow internet.
Teacher Terry
3-24-20, 12:52am
If he loses his job you can move in together which will have many benefits.
ApatheticNoMore
3-24-20, 1:15am
If he loses his job you can move in together which will have many benefits.
I'm home working from home all day because I can't go to work due to work from home being the law here now plus attempts to keep us safer (and they do no doubt keep us safer). It's a one bedroom apartment. He can't just go and hang out at a coffee shop and look for jobs in the day while I work, as all coffee shops and restaurants have been closed, as have all gyms etc. etc. I mean there is pretty much no where to go but for a walk (who ever knew walking would get so popular, I've never seen more people walking in my life), everything is shuttered, closed by law. There probably aren't even any support groups at the unemployment office. Sure there were when I was unemployed, but all group activities are cancelled everywhere pretty much, noone is meeting in groups for ANYTHING. We aren't even supposed to visit other people really. So there is nothing he could do but hang around in my one bedroom apartment while I hung around in the living room and worked (assuming I have work). There is no other room to go into but the bedroom, and of course there is no yard to putter around in. And I have to work, or I have no money either, and that work has to be from home now, there is no more going to the office for any of us for who knows how long (legally it's a month now, but that could get extended).
It's not my idea of many benefits, is there anyone this really appeals to, having to work all day in a room, with your partner in the same tiny room who has nothing to do. I mean is there anyone who says "oh romantic" to that.
I don't even know what one is supposed to do on losing a job now, I guess if one is furloughed they can hope it comes back. I mean ordinarily I know what to do when unemployed, look for work. Maybe it's a deep recession and there are 1000 applications for every job, but still the only thing is look for work. But with vast quantities of businesses closed by law, vast quantities of the rest 100% work from home also by law ... this isn't an economy "in a recession", this isn't even an economy at this point.
There is a moratorium on evictions though so one can go many months without paying rent I suppose, but I believe one just runs up debt if they do. If I had one wish from a genie: it would be for those I care about to be healthy and make it make it through this alive and well. But if I also had a second wish, he'd keep his job.
If he loses his job you can move in together which will have many benefits.
I was going to ask what those benefits were but I think ANM did that sufficiently well.
I’ve lived with SO for 15 years. He’s a great guy. But I dread the idea that he may have to start working from home, or worse, get furloughed for the remainder of this pandemic.
Yeah, the joke is, is there going to be a "baby bump" in 9 months, or a "divorce bump"?
The ability to co-exist happily with DH is proportionate to space available. When we lived in NJ, he would hang out for hours in his home office which was on the opposite corner of the house from where my home office was. Up here, his tiny workshop and his boat has saved our marriage.
Teacher Terry
3-24-20, 3:35pm
I would rather be with my partner in a tiny space than living separately during such a difficult time.
mschrisgo2
3-24-20, 3:46pm
Yeah, the joke is, is there going to be a "baby bump" in 9 months, or a "divorce bump"?
Maybe both. Or babies with 2 really unhappy parents who can’t afford to divorce, like in the “olden days” when women didn’t work and earn money outside of the home. It feels like half of the jobs have gone away, nearly everything with direct customer service.
truepeacenik
3-25-20, 3:01pm
My industry was shut down until (at least) May.
there is no work from home option, and my license would be seized, and I’d be fined.
meanwhile, the vast majority of people in my field cannot get unemployment as we are freelancers. Illegally mis categorized, at that.
Teacher Terry
3-25-20, 4:24pm
True, that sounds so tough.
frugal-one
3-25-20, 5:21pm
My industry was shut down until (at least) May.
there is no work from home option, and my license would be seized, and I’d be fined.
meanwhile, the vast majority of people in my field cannot get unemployment as we are freelancers. Illegally mis categorized, at that.
If illegally miscategorized.... report them to either your state department of labor or the federal department of labor.
There are rumors hours will be reduced. One location had a Covid-19 positive employee and is being desanitized including professionally misted. It is not the site I work at.
Just got laid off. 13.5 years and buh bye! No severance. Getting paid through the end of the month and the 4 untaken vacation days I had earned so far this year.
Yikes Tradd, that sucks. <sarcasm> and what a generous severance package.
Teacher Terry
3-25-20, 7:41pm
I am so very sorry. Is your workload decline that much?
They don't know how to do even 20% of what I did. They never wanted to learn. Now they are screwed. Haha.
Boss was such a witch I'm glad to be rid of her.
They don't know how to do even 20% of what I did. They never wanted to learn. Now they are screwed. Haha.
Boss was such a witch I'm glad to be rid of her.
Tradd I am so sorry.
There is a customs broker job in Southfield Michigan for ups, actually more than one but I thought of you with the senior customs broker designati
1on indeed, can't copy the link
Three jobs on indeed in savannah, which I would prefer to michigan
Close to FL for great diving
San Onofre Guy
3-25-20, 9:30pm
I had a weeklong arbitration to monitor this week which didn’t happen. That isn’t a problem as I am retired and the trial monitoring and risk management consulting which I do is gravy and something we don’t need. The plan for that income is for grandchild’s 529 plan and legacy money for children and future generations. We also donate more based on my non retirement income
I had a ton of work still. Other parts of the business had come to a halt.
We can start a pool here of how long until Princess has a meltdown and they place a desperate call to Tradd to come back. I am going to say 2 weeks.
We can start a pool here of how long until Princess has a meltdown and they place a desperate call to Tradd to come back. I am going to say 2 weeks.
OMG. I needed that laugh. Yes, she is going to have a meltdown at having to do this stuff. :moon:
Tradd I am so sorry.
There is a customs broker job in Southfield Michigan for ups, actually more than one but I thought of you with the senior customs broker designati
1on indeed, can't copy the link
Three jobs on indeed in savannah, which I would prefer to michigan
Close to FL for great diving
I dive the Great Lakes. Not warm water!
So sorry to hear this Tradd. Please keep us posted with how you are doing.
Hubster is cybersecurity officer. 75% of the office is working at home. So his job has gone nuts! Trying to secure all the personal information on State systems running through everyone's home connections. :|(Its a whole new set of issues and the decision was sudden. Folks came to work Wednesday. Were home by noon.
catherine
3-25-20, 11:46pm
Tradd, I am so sorry!
I dive the Great Lakes. Not warm water!
Got it!
chrisgermany
3-26-20, 7:10am
So sorry about that, Tradd.
I hope that once economy gets better you will find work where you are fully appreciated.
happystuff
3-26-20, 7:29am
Just got laid off. 13.5 years and buh bye! No severance. Getting paid through the end of the month and the 4 untaken vacation days I had earned so far this year.
So sorry you got laid off, Tradd. I can totally relate as I was 16 years - no un-used vacation pay, no severance - nada.
May I suggest applying for unemployment as soon as possible? The system is definitely flooded in my area and the online process took about 6 hours of repeated page-refreshing.
Good luck.
Tradd, I’ll bet things work out for the best. It seams like you weren’t that happy with your workplace, but sometimes it takes a shove to move on.
Hopefully this will just give you a little break, and you will most likely land a better job.
And what’s wrong with warm water diving? Hopefully, later in the year I’ll at least get to try a little snorkeling for a start.
Tradd, I’ll bet things work out for the best. It seams like you weren’t that happy with your workplace, but sometimes it takes a shove to move on.
Hopefully this will just give you a little break, and you will most likely land a better job.
And what’s wrong with warm water diving? Hopefully, later in the year I’ll at least get to try a little snorkeling for a start.
I don't like being hot. Never have. And the hot flashes make it even worse. Plus, warm water doesn't have the awesome shipwrecks we have in the Great Lakes. I'm not into diving for pretty fishies and coral! I've dived wooden wrecks that went down in the 1870s and 1880s. Very intact. You don't find those in salt water.
So sorry you got laid off, Tradd. I can totally relate as I was 16 years - no un-used vacation pay, no severance - nada.
May I suggest applying for unemployment as soon as possible? The system is definitely flooded in my area and the online process took about 6 hours of repeated page-refreshing.
Good luck.
I applied at 2am today. I had tried earlier and the website kept timing out on me.
I don't like being hot. Never have. And the hot flashes make it even worse. Plus, warm water doesn't have the awesome shipwrecks we have in the Great Lakes. I'm not into diving for pretty fishies and coral! I've dived wooden wrecks that went down in the 1870s and 1880s. Very intact. You don't find those in salt water.
We do have some dive sights nearby that are of wrecks, but I don’t know how old. And I don’t like the cold, but to each his own I guess. I do like the looks of that clear blue water. Visibility is very good.
Tradd, have you seen this reference resource? This is up where we live, so we go to all these beaches but we don't dive like you do but it looks really cool:
http://www.michiganpreserves.org/grandtraverse.htm
Teacher Terry
3-26-20, 12:33pm
Tradd, it looks like everyone on unemployment will get the extra 600/week.
Oh, you're not going to believe this! I believe I mentioned I have a non-compete. I remembered it said I can't take customers to a new company for two years. One of the customers must have contacted the office to see who would be handling her stuff now. Old company's HR just emailed me and said the non-compete says I can't even contact the old customers. If I don't stop immediately, they will be forced to pursue formal legal action. That is RIDICULOUS.
I don't have a copy of it. Non-complete is not among documents on the company ADP portal.
I didn't try to solicit business or even say anything bad about company. Just told customers I was laid off and it was good working with them.
They want you to form relationships with the customers, but they can't even bother to tell the customers when someone has left.
ApatheticNoMore
3-26-20, 1:01pm
Don't know what is up with my bfs job (still has it for now). Another reason I dearly hope he can stay employed even though he is going to the office and there is risk there, unlike me working at home, especially as his boss keeps hopping on planes right and left (sheer lunacy as it's for pleasure not business!), is that it really does seem true that men base far more of their self-esteem on work than women. And I say that as a woman who was not doing well psychologically in unemployment at all (at least after it went on and on and on ...), and who needs to work.
Oh, you're not going to believe this! I believe I mentioned I have a non-compete. I remembered it said I can't take customers to a new company for two years. One of the customers must have contacted the office to see who would be handling her stuff now. Old company's HR just emailed me and said the non-compete says I can't even contact the old customers. If I don't stop immediately, they will be forced to pursue formal legal action. That is RIDICULOUS.
I don't have a copy of it. Non-complete is not among documents on the company ADP portal.
I didn't try to solicit business or even say anything bad about company. Just told customers I was laid off and it was good working with them.
They want you to form relationships with the customers, but they can't even bother to tell the customers when someone has left.
Im not a legal expert by any means, but since they let you go, I have a hard time believing a non compete would be in effect.
Id do a little research.
A fellow choir member at church is a recently retired employment lawyer. I'll ask him about this.
HR just sent a copy of the document. Now to read it.
This is a relevant topic for me. When I went from working for a corporation to being freelance, my success was dependent on my ability to bring in clients. I don't believe that a few clients are going to trigger legal action from your former company, as long as no one makes any noise. I always asked myself if my clients went to X company because of ME or because of THEM. If it was because of ME, I risked it. If it was because of THEM, I thought twice. I've never been sued by my former company. I think the courts usually recognize individual agency in satisfying clients and favor the relationship unless there were extraneous efforts to pull a client away from the former company.
These are my thoughts and experiences and may not stand up to legal scrutiny.
This is a relevant topic for me. When I went from working for a corporation to being freelance, my success was dependent on my ability to bring in clients. I don't believe that a few clients are going to trigger legal action from your former company, as long as no one makes any noise. I always asked myself if my clients went to X company because of ME or because of THEM. If it was because of ME, I risked it. If it was because of THEM, I thought twice. I've never been sued by my former company. I think the courts usually recognize individual agency in satisfying clients and favor the relationship unless there were extraneous efforts to pull a client away from the former company.
These are my thoughts and experiences and may not stand up to legal scrutiny.
Thanks for your thoughts. Those were interesting.
Just out of curiosity, did you sign the non-compete agreement as part of an employment contract or in return for some amount of money at the time you were laid off? You didn't say in your posts and you can't be held to terms you didn't agree to.
It was part of an employment contract back in 2017 that I'd forgotten about.
mschrisgo2
3-26-20, 3:40pm
Trade, they would have a very hard time making that stick if they were to take you to court. It was part of your contract with them, they broke the contract by letting you go, the onus is on them. Especially since you were the only person in that position, I.e. they don’t have anybody who can take over adequately. Customers leave if their needs aren’t met, and former employees have no control over where those customers go. If they happen to land in the same place as you, it’s a happy coincidence. My take- don’t give it a second thought... besides being amused as they obviously scramble.
I’ve been in touch with my counterparts in the old company’s other US offices and even one person in Germany. We always worked great together and helped out as needed. Had some contacts with personal cell phones or LinkedIn and others asked if they could share my personal cell with others. Had some good chats. They were shocked I was laid off.
If you were there 13 years and they didn't have you sign it until 2017 they would have to have paid you a significant sum otherwise it is unenforceable. If you signed it 13 years ago that is another story.
At my job more people are using up vacation days. Parents are getting burnt out watching the kids and having the parent who doesn't work from home or the grandparent take time off to help.
If you were there 13 years and they didn't have you sign it until 2017 they would have to have paid you a significant sum otherwise it is unenforceable. If you signed it 13 years ago that is another story.
Nope. Signed it 2017 and didn’t get anything for it. I can’t even tell you when my last raise was.
I've been going over bills.
*LA Fitness - $30- not billed for March (closure's). Next due 4/26
*Natural gas - $13.10 account credit
*Electric - $17 credit
*Verizon Wireless - paid ahead 1 month
*AT&T home internet - $50/month, paid this month and next with gift card I got from AT&T for getting service online several weeks ago
*Rent - next due 4/31
*Car payment - next due 4/20
Credit card - due 4/9
I am stocked up on food and toiletries due to virus situation.
I'll get my last paycheck on Monday.
So apparently our office manager saw the same thing I did about virtual happy hours because she arranged them for the office, grouping anyone who wanted to participate in random groups of 5 or 6 people. I just attended my first one and it served its purpose. Four of the five of us are doing fine. One coworker, cooped up at home with two small children and her husband, was really stressed out and looked like she was about to cry a few times. Trying to manage her kids while getting work done, and worrying about her mom in a different state's health/safety has been quite a challenge for her. At the end she expressed much gratitude for the hour we'd just spent together.
It was actually a lot of fun. And I look forward to the next one. The office does "Thirsty Thursday" each week, so I'm guessing this will be a weekly thing. At one point in our happy hour someone suggested that we each tell a funny story from school. So I told a story from a Communications class I took in college. The class was about great cinema. We watched movies like "Midnight Cowboy" and "The Graduate". And the professor, an old old lady, told funny stories from her life. Not sure I really "learned" anything, but it was a great choice for an elective.
The best moment in the class was when the professor talked about how her Shakespeare troop was asked to come perform in front of the very first TV cameras in the early 30's way before TV was a thing. The technicians just needed something to broadcast so they could test stuff out. The troop brought their heavy wool costumes but the lights were insanely bright and hot so between "performances" all the actors got out of their costumes. Additionally there were mirrors everywhere to make the lighting even brighter because the cameras needed as much light as possible. At one point between performances someone shouted "Geraldine! You're naked on camera!" It turned out that the mirrors were inadvertantly reflecting the actors' dressing area into one of the cameras that was still broadcasting...
I’m increasingly reminded of the book in the robot series by Asimov about the planet Aurora.
It would be a good read during this pandemic. It has nothing to do with pandemics but everything to do with social distancing.
ApatheticNoMore
3-27-20, 11:24am
I've been going over bills.
*LA Fitness - $30- not billed for March (closure's). Next due 4/26
*Natural gas - $13.10 account credit
*Electric - $17 credit
*Verizon Wireless - paid ahead 1 month
*AT&T home internet - $50/month, paid this month and next with gift card I got from AT&T for getting service online several weeks ago
*Rent - next due 4/31
*Car payment - next due 4/20
Credit card - due 4/9
I am stocked up on food and toiletries due to virus situation.
I'll get my last paycheck on Monday.
look at CORBA and/or the ACA plans out there, maybe your existing coverage still lasts a bit. Bearer of bad news here, but it popped out in terms of necessity (maybe more so in a pandemic, ugh!) bills.
Auto (and homeonwers/rental?) insurance and taxes and car taxes maybe some day depending on when these are due. If it's awhile you may be long since at a new job by then. But health insurance is monthly and you have to sign up about a month ahead or so in my experience.
look at CORBA and/or the ACA plans out there, maybe your existing coverage still lasts a bit. Bearer of bad news here, but it popped out in terms of necessity (maybe more so in a pandemic, ugh!) bills.
Auto (and homeonwers/rental?) insurance and taxes and car taxes maybe some day depending on when these are due. If it's awhile you may be long since at a new job by then. But health insurance is monthly and you have to sign up about a month ahead or so in my experience.
Health insurance ends Monday. I was told I'd have to wait for several weeks before I got the packet about COBRA. No clue on cost.
Renters insurance ($115) is due 5/11. I'd just paid half on my car insurance (policy renews 4/11) and second half ($265) isn't due until 6/10.
Car license plate renewal is in May. $150. Just have to have it done by end of May.
I get my last paycheck Monday. I'm going to see how much it is and then assess from there. A few friends I've helped in the past have asked me if I needed any help. I told them that if they wanted to send something my way, I'd be grateful for it.
Unemployment here is swamped. People are now being asked to apply on certain days of the week, depending on what letter their last name begins with. Last year there were something like 30K applications by late March. There were 34K just on Monday of this week. Saw that on the news yesterday.
I also have $160 cash I'd taken out of the bank several weeks ago. I'll keep that on hand for groceries.
Pulled out my InstantPot today. Haven't used it too much. Did 1 doz hard boiled eggs. Egg salad sandwich for lunch.
I definitely have plenty of food.
Health insurance ends Monday. I was told I'd have to wait for several weeks before I got the packet about COBRA. No clue on cost.
.
This does not sound legal--please consult with an unemployment lawyer on this and the non compete. Lots on the net about Illinois non-competes and it looks like Illinois does not like to enforce them when it means someone will not be able to get another job?
Anyway, I would def talk to a lawyer, as one reason the non compete is uninforceable is if the firing is illegal, so I would be talking to someone knowledgeable.
Good luck.
The non-compete is actually a non-disclosure.
catherine
3-27-20, 12:56pm
Health insurance ends Monday. I was told I'd have to wait for several weeks before I got the packet about COBRA. No clue on cost.
.
I hate to be Debbie Downer, but in my experience, COBRA sucks. Another argument for universal health care. COBRA is very expensive.
Teacher Terry
3-27-20, 1:16pm
Our experience with cobra has been the same as Catherine’s.
ApatheticNoMore
3-27-20, 2:02pm
Cobra tends to be expensive yes. However most doctors wouldn't even take my ACA plan, so I'm much more open minded about looking at alternatives to the ACA, but still one has to live within whatever money they have, and Cobra might be out of the question considering what it tends to cost. Someone somewhere loves their ACA plan maybe, but I hate them. The ACA sucks. And it's expensive as well, but less than Cobra generally.
I had a good PPO plan. Cost me $250 a month. So I can’t imagine what it would be under COBRA.
Two customers just reached out to me via LinkedIn (I had not been in contact with them before outside of work) and thanked me for my help and such.
Raises, scheduled to go into effect Monday, are on hold indefinitely. The dress code has also been suspended for a week now. The boss got us all lunch in appreciation of our hard work at a time of crisis.
iris lilies
3-27-20, 6:50pm
I had a good PPO plan. Cost me $250 a month. So I can’t imagine what it would be under COBRA.
Tradd, price out ACA coverage. But if providers don’t take it, I guess it’s pretty useless.
For us in the years bridging retirement and Medicare, it was decent, even though we did have to pay back a shit ton of money in subsidies for the year 2019. But that’s OK, we were covered, and there was really no other way to do it by then because potential COBRA coverage had run out.
I did take cobra coverage as long as I could and that was $12,000 a year for 2 people.
Raises, scheduled to go into effect Monday, are on hold indefinitely. The dress code has also been suspended for a week now. The boss got us all lunch in appreciation of our hard work at a time of crisis.
Yppej, please remind me what sort of work you do. Being able to dress in jeans or something more comfortable was always great for me.
Yppej, please remind me what sort of work you do. Being able to dress in jeans or something more comfortable was always great for me.
I work for a supplier. We support the food and fire protection industries among others deemed essential.
Teacher Terry
3-27-20, 10:11pm
Tradd, did the people still working have more seniority or were they paid less so they saved money getting rid of you? So much crap goes on in workplaces.
Tradd, did the people still working have more seniority or were they paid less so they saved money getting rid of you? So much crap goes on in workplaces.
In my department, I had the most seniority by 3.5 years. Manager had been there 9 years and supervisor 10. One guy brought over from one of the company’s South African offices last year has been with company for 8 years. Princess had been there about 2.5 years. Manager and supervisor got paid more. Not sure about South Africa guy but he worked on different projects so wasn’t really involved with our stuff.
So yes, they saved money by getting rid of me. They also lost a ton of knowledge. Their loss. I’m glad I’m gone.
Only started on my resume today. I needed to put some distance between me and the old job.
Teacher Terry
3-28-20, 12:40am
They are short sighted because in the long run they will lose money by getting rid of you.
happystuff
3-28-20, 9:43am
Only started on my resume today. I needed to put some distance between me and the old job.
I can totally relate to this.
Applied for my 1st job yesterday, but since there was a "test" after the application, I've held off applying for anything else there until I get the results.
It's very interesting how job-hunting has changed since the last time I needed to look!
I was thinking how nice it would be if there were lots more teleworking--nice for the environment, nice for traveling on the roads--imagine no commuting! You would save tons of time, and have more for your loved ones. The advantages seem almost endless to me. I'm sure we'll get there some day; I'd like to think this would speed things up.
We’re hiring as fast as we can. Had been for a year due to expansion in our department and it continues as we are still opening new units. Just opened one this week which was part of the expansion plan but was pushed forward due to plans to have more units with less patients per unit in the event that we need separate rooms for covid patients. Might open another next week. But we are desperate for staff,
frugal-one
3-28-20, 3:31pm
In my department, I had the most seniority by 3.5 years. Manager had been there 9 years and supervisor 10. One guy brought over from one of the company’s South African offices last year has been with company for 8 years. Princess had been there about 2.5 years. Manager and supervisor got paid more. Not sure about South Africa guy but he worked on different projects so wasn’t really involved with our stuff.
So yes, they saved money by getting rid of me. They also lost a ton of knowledge. Their loss. I’m glad I’m gone.
Are you over age 40? Could let have let you go to pay someone else more? If so, age discrimination?
frugal-one
3-28-20, 3:33pm
I was thinking how nice it would be if there were lots more teleworking--nice for the environment, nice for traveling on the roads--imagine no commuting! You would save tons of time, and have more for your loved ones. The advantages seem almost endless to me. I'm sure we'll get there some day; I'd like to think this would speed things up.
I loved working from home. Had some office mates who could not do it... not disciplined enough... and chose to come into the office even though not required to do so. I was afraid they would ruin it for the rest of us.
Are you over age 40? Could let have let you go to pay someone else more? If so, age discrimination?
51
But really this isn’t worth it. I’m glad to be rid of them. They were awful.
Exploratory call with a recruiter this afternoon about a corporate global trade compliance position.
Teacher Terry
3-30-20, 1:55pm
Great tradd!
I've always done the actual customs clearances. This would be regulatory stuff at an importer/exporter. Before I only got into the regulatory weeds if someone asked about it, as I was much more operational.
Resume question:
I'l ask my friend helping me with it later, but I'm working on it now, so I'll ask it here, too:
How far back do you go back with positions? I'm 51. I've been in this industry since 1992. I was at the job I was laid off from for 13.5 years. That job is the most relevant one.
How far back do you go back with positions?
How many of your previous positions gave you the skills/responsibilities/experiences in the job you're going for? I'd list your most recent job and mention others if they were germane to the position you're applying for. You don't have to account for every single month of your work career in a resume. Save that for the application.
This is a sideways way of saying that you should have more than one resume. Your experiences won't be relevant to every job you go for, so what you put in the resume should be tailored to the kind of position you're seeking. Now that resumes are all electronic, it's not hard to make one version a template and then change the wording to emphasize (or even drop) certain aspects of previous jobs (including your most recent one).
Really, it's the most recent one. Most people don't seem to stay with employers as long as I did, so more positions would be listed.
I changed my resume around depending on whether the position I was going for was more code-based, more supervisory/managerial, more process-oriented, whatever. However, I was not in the same actual job for almost 15 years; I probably had five different jobs (at the same company) in 15 years (and at least a dozen more at five companies earlier in my career). If previous positions really don't add much to what you offer this position besides inferring that you're an "older" worker, I'd be tempted to minimize them or even omit them.
The other positions give good background and round out my experience. Most customs brokers ONLY ever do customs-related stuff. I actually was in the industry handling transportation for nearly 20 years before I started doing the customs clearances. That is VERY unusual.
A third employee is back at work after being cleared. Like employee #2 he thought he might have been exposed through a significant other. The first guy thought he might have been infected by a medical provider. I am wondering how many near misses before we get a hit.
The call went well. Yay! The recruiter is setting up a phone interview with company for me. I just have to finish my resume. That's my project for tonight. It's a global trade analyst position. It would be a good fit. The funny part is that this company was a long-time customer of my old company, but I never handled their shipments, and they stopped working with old company about 4 years ago. Commute would only be about 30 minutes.
A third employee is back at work after being cleared. Like employee #2 he thought he might have been exposed through a significant other. The first guy thought he might have been infected by a medical provider. I am wondering how many near misses before we get a hit.
Yikes!
SteveinMN
3-30-20, 10:05pm
I hope it goes great, Tradd!
KnownRogue
3-30-20, 10:16pm
Global Trade Analyst.
That's legit intriguing.
Global Trade Analyst.
That's legit intriguing.
I'm a licensed customs broker. I'm licensed by Customs, I don't work for them. I've been in international shipping since 1992. I clear imported goods through Customs. Very fascinating work. But I can also do trade compliance for an importer.
That brokers license is very difficult to get. The other folks can tell you what I went through to get it. Took me two tries at the exam and a year of studying.
Resume all done and sent along to a few folks for eyeballing it.
happystuff
3-31-20, 7:15am
Resume all done and sent along to a few folks for eyeballing it.
Congrats and good luck.
I got my last paycheck from the old company today. It's about $800 more than I expected. I was able to cover ALL of my bills, including rent and car payment through the end of May. I even paid May rent and car payment today. Leaves me with about $700. That's HUGE peace of mind for me.
I will also be able to the cover $150 license plate renewal, due by late May. I've not even gotten my renewal yet.
Tradd, It sounds as if you're having a good start!!
Today is resume tweaking. Have to get it to recruiter ASAP.
Sending good wishes for a good position that values your skills and that meets your wants as well as needs.
KnownRogue
3-31-20, 10:08am
Good deal, tradd. Hope this all goes well for you.
Teacher Terry
3-31-20, 12:16pm
All good news Tradd.
If anyone needs resume help, try out this website. It was recommended by a senior NCIU nurse who told me she sends all new nurses to it. You have to pay $2.45 for 14 day access to print/download your resume, but if you're truly stuck, that's cheap.
www.resume-now.com
A second location of my company has shut down to be professionally disinfected after 2 employees tested positive. All employees have been sent home for 14 days and employees from other sites will go there to cover. So far my site has not been infected.
There is now a company wide hiring freeze.
Yppej - do think there might be furloughs or layoffs?
I had a good 45 min conversation with a recruiter for my industry today. She's been in the business a bit less than I have, and knows what my experience is valuable.
Tradd they are unsure about layoffs at this time. They are trying to reach out to customers on the non-essential side of the business virtually starting today and will see how that goes. You set an appointment and call in for a virtual tour and an employee with a camera walks around the store showing you things you want to look at.
Having fire/ems training night tonight, all Zoom.
On triage :-(
Teacher Terry
4-1-20, 8:30pm
Bae, that’s sad.
5% of the staff at my site were laid off today but I was spared.
Just lost a summer class because they needed to give it to full time faculty, so income halved for summer.
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