jenket944

Things have been in a downward spiral here at work for quite a while. We've been losing a lot of proposals to other defense companies and the Commanche cancellation hit us real hard. We had 2 programs here supporting it. I haven't had an official assignment since last July, been getting tasks by the drink. Now it's a lot worse, it's gotten so slow that only a few of the guys in my dept have steady work. My mentor even asked me if I had anything he could help me with. I've been expecting a layoff for a few months, simply because I knew we had more engineers than work so I'm not surprised.

I did have an idea about taking an educational leave of absence, as I'm almost done with my MS degree in aerospace engineering. The thesis is the only thing left to complete. I approached the mechanical director about it and he said he'd get back with me. That was 2 weeks ago. I went to my HR rep and found out that I have to submit a request to my manager to start the process, so I went to see the analysis sub-section manager and his response was he didn't think it was the right solution to my situation. Before I could ask why not, he added that a layoff was coming and I'm on the list. He also said a lot of people are going to be let go and it will be soon. Tried to push him to tell me how soon, but all he would say is that it was in process.

I'm kinda bummed but also relieved because I've been struggling trying to finish my thesis while working full time, as well as conduct a job search (which they knew I was doing for months, with their blessing because of the lack of work available). At least now I can go concentrate on school work. On the plus side, my thesis advisor said he could hire me on as a research assistant over the summer. The pay is a lot lower, but so are the hours (10-20 hours a week for $1100 a month). Personally I know it's for the best but I'm still aggrivated about how it all went down. I really feel like the analysis manager didn't do much to try and find me any work because he had some bias against me from a few years ago.

Oh, well.....I'll just go up to Rennsport Reunion and forget about this place.

PorscheDoc

Wow, i got to say that is suprising that a manager would tell you that you are on a list to be layed off. Not a wise managerial decision, but i guess it benefits you.

hitbyastick

If you don't mind my asking, how was working full time and college, as I am soon to be back in school. Well this fall anyway and I don't want to give up my awesomely cool job

Dave

Sorry to hear it, I've been out for 4 months and the novelty has worn off. Hang in there, it's only temporary!

Aleks951

I hear ya. I'll be out of work in about 2-3 weeks. Well, at least then I'll have time to have fun with my 951!

dme

If you can afford it then enjoy the free time for awhile. I was laid off in May a couple years ago and enjoyed the time home with the wife and kids for the summer. After that the stress began, but I have some good memories of that summer. Good luck. A lot of defense jobs down here in Texas.

yoyoguy2

sucks, a friend of mine just got laid off from Sun Microsystems in the much publicized downsizing. i think he's rebuilding the engine in his rx7 in the spare time

Joe Anstett

I feel your pain, hang in there. My last company went out of business in late 2001. I was unemployed for 5 months (first time unemployed ever) and two years later I'm still recovering financially. My luck, I came down with Kidney stones and no health insurace, incurred about $15,000 in hospital and doctor bills.

I hope you have better luck than I did. Good luck!

judd944

Wow, we just spoke about your job! That sucks, but now maybe you can enjoy some beach time in FL!

Peckster

What the hell is an analysis sub-section manager?

What you should do depends on how long you've been there and how your company treats staff it lays off.

But it's in the company's interest that you decide to leave before it has to offer you an exit package.

If layoffs are happening soon, I'd hang in as long as possible. I think that's what that manager was trying to tell you, and he was going out on a limb doing that.

That's my take

Shabba

Dude don't sweat it too hard...unemployed here for 3 months (well, I have a teaching gig at the local college part-time but it's peanuts)...time off will help you clear your mind but don't sit on your ***, start sleeping in, etc. etc....when the call comes, it will be really hard to get back in the groove!

83na944

Bummer. I've been there, too. I can offer a few pieces of advice.

First, tell everyone you know you're looking for a job. Contacts are the best way to find a job. There's a lot of recruiting done through graduate programs, so let the teachers know you'll be looking, too. If they know you, they're really good references. And start looking now- when everyone else finds out, the market will be flooded.

Second, tighten up your finances. Keep spending to a minimum and budget all expenses. That way you'll know when you really need to find something. You'll be able to wait a lot longer than you first think.

Third, you might consider keeping the health insurance as long as you can. I think they have to let you keep it 3 months by law, but you have to pay all of the costs. As Joe points out, even a minor illness can put you way behind.

Finally, remember you are not your job. You are still a valuable person and obviously have a good education. Don't get discouraged, something will turn up.

Good Luck. Enjoy school.

jenket944

It was nice that I was earning a good income while going to school, but took me a lot longer than it would have otherwise. The company was paying for my tuition and books, so that was a bonus, too.

I've managed to save up some money, most of it in my 401k, so I can take a loan out if I absolutely need to. I should get a severance of 6 weeks pay (2 weeks base plus 1 week per year with the company), plus they'll pay me cash for my remaining vacation time (another week). Paychecks are a week behind, too, so I'll have the equivalent of 8 weeks of pay after my last day. I'll definitely be enjoying the time off...it will give me a chance to enjoy life again instead of just being in this constant mode of work-work-work.

I'm trying to line up a job with Lockheed Martin in Fort Worth or Houston, but I can't relocate yet since I haven't finished the degree. So, kind of a catch-22, but one that can be resolved fairly easily this summer. I'm looking forward to hanging around campus again.

LOL...yeah, the way our site is setup is pretty nuts. The engineering staff is broken down into software, mechanical, electrical, and systems. Each one has a director and the mechanical director has 2 sub-managers under him, one for the design group and one for the analysis group. Their primary role is to make sure that the bazillion or so programs we have here are staffed accordingly. So the director will place engineers on XYZ program and the engineers will report to some supervisor on that program who oversee their day-to-day activities. So I only have contact with the director/manager when performance reviews come around or he needs to place me on another program.

The analysis manager is new to the management game. He's been a mid-level engineer for a looooong time and he just started this position about a year ago. He probably shouldn't have told me half the stuff he has, but he's always been candid and I've worked this to my advantage. I'm probably not supposed to know about the layoff, but it was pretty much a given as he's been hinting for a while that I needed to be looking for work elsewhere. At one point he told me that my employment here was "a courtesy" while I finish my degree. He actually admitted to my face that he wouldn't allow any of the thermal analysis work to be given to me as long as the senior thermal guys were doing stress work (a result of the Commanche program cancellation). Part of the problem is that I'm officially a designer according to my dept number but I've been doing analysis for 3 years. They lumped all the mechanical new-hires into design, no matter what they were actually doing. So, on paper, this guy isn't even my true boss but yet he has control of what work I get.

I would've left months ago if I had been finished with school. I'm just holding out for the severance now....I'm not the only one either.

PrerYDoG

I've been working full time and going to school part/full (depending on semester) time for a little over 4 years. My company has been paying for tuition and fees, while giving me plenty of money in salary to develop software and do statistical analysis. They've been very flexible with my hours, but it has still been very very long. It hasn't been uncommon to be putting in 70+ hours a week, with my days looking like:

Get up EARLY, go to work
leave work, go to classes
come back to work
Leave work LATE

so that I could get in the classes I needed in sequence (without being in school for 20 years), and still put in my at least requisite 40 hours a week. Sometimes I got lucky and was able to pull early morning or late evening classes and didn't have the added commute to school from work, to work from school that tacked on a good hour to my day, but that wasn't often.

In all, I will be near college debt free when I graduate (2 week), have 5 years of programming and statistical analysis experience, fresh out of college at 24 (not THAT much older than many people I'm graduating with), and I don't have to worry with the added stress of looking for a job. The whole ordeal has really helped me with my time management and prioritization skills, and I have to say if you're one who just gets into trouble with "down-time" and need a little maturing (along with those things I've listed), doing this is THE way to go. If you're hoping to get the "college experience", quit your job, get loans and grants, live off your parents and do it like 99% of the people out there, because you're NOT going to get the "college experience" doing it my way.

Good luck! Have fun

Shutemup

Where are you going to school at jenket?