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Ain\'t no such thing as job security

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HGFS Wolfsburg Wizard

531 posts · joined Feb 2005 ·

#528730
Started out just as any other day today....until around mid day when I was in the middle of getting a tender ready I was called in to the boss's office.

My industry has been pretty lean for a while so we've been doing it tough with turnover & margins a bit sad, but we've been working really hard on improving that over the last few months and we've been getting there. Must not have been enough though as I've been made redundant, effective immediately, so after 5 years of putting in the hard yards for the company, within about an hour I was home and officially unemployed.:repuke

Wish I knew about this a month or so ago, maybe I wouldn't have bought that Forester GT for the wife. Oops.

Still can't believe it, neither can the customers of mine that I've told. Maybe its an opportunity in disguise???
1954 Oval long term project going nowhere
1958 Beetle drag car project
1959 Beetle project I need to sell one day
1969 Squareback

Hertz www.melburgluft.com

1,080 posts · joined Nov 2005 ·

#528737
John Howard has a lot to answer for. All our assets weve worked for gone, all our rights weve worked for gone. This country has taken a few big steps backwards lately. Hopefully, as you say, this can be used as an opportunity. Good luck.
Click the Beetle

68AutoBug Beetle Restorer - Experience over 138\% - YIKES --

11,654 posts · joined Aug 2002 ·

#528738
Sorry to hear that Greg,
Must have been a shock for you....
and the wife....

I hope something better comes along...

cheers

Lee
- Helping keep Air Cooled VWs on the road - location: SCONE in the Upper Hunter Valley - Northern NSW 320 kms NNW of SYDNEY---

last celtic warrior Wolfsburg Wizard

402 posts · joined Aug 2002 ·

#528743
Mate, don't let your old boss firing you slow you down, eh. All that work you've been putting into strengthening their market position, well it's time to start putting that directly into the customers as your own boss. The customers will show their appreciation by paying your morgtage and car payments...

What it comes down to is, if you have confidence in what you can do and the customers have confidence in what you can do, you're in business. And don't feel guilty about stealing customers away from the company you were working for up til now, they've shown no allegience to you, so why would you owe any to them... As far as "your" customers are concerned, you were looking after them, and you can keep on doing that with or without some "boss" getting in the middle all the time.

crewcabconnection Being Sid James

1,922 posts · joined Apr 2003 ·

#528744
what he said - people do business with people - not companies....if you've got good client relationships, see if you can leverage them ... you could also go see your rivals and see if you can create a new job. Do it quick, the boss with be busy trying to consolidate them, and he won't be telling them the business is iffy...make sure they know the real story ... give em all a call (if you don't have a non-compete clause) - just say hello and give em and email or a mobile....the goodwill fades after a while...don't delay...hard working people tend to find new jobs ay...

Best of luck...

[ Edited on 31-8-2006 by crewcabconnection ]
Loves a lolcat

HGFS Wolfsburg Wizard

531 posts · joined Feb 2005 ·

#528746
Yep it was a real shock, at least my wife has just started working again so theres some income, and being a redundancy there's a reasonable payment coming that will help until I find another job. Rather still have the job though. Was not the best job in the world but a decent product I was selling and the best job I've had in this industry so was relatively happy.

Toughest decision now is do I stay in the same industry, or get out now and do something totally different. Different sounds a bit more exciting, but its easier sticking with what I know. 10 years in the industry = a fair bit of experience.
1954 Oval long term project going nowhere
1958 Beetle drag car project
1959 Beetle project I need to sell one day
1969 Squareback

Bizarre Moderator The artist formerly known as blue74l

12,789 posts · joined Aug 2002 ·

#528755
That is crap!

I am sorry i missed you at ARBS

Stay with the industry. It is a good one. There are lots of different areas to work in.


Barry
Futue te ipsum!!!

shaihulud Custom Title Time!

1,448 posts · joined Nov 2005 ·

#528781
I agree with warrior. If you don't have a non-competitive clause in your exit agreement (if you have one), go get those clients for yourself. Your company has shown you no loyalty, you owe them none.

How things have changed. In 1969 when I was working for a stock broker during the Poseidon mining share boom, I got a job with another stock broker to be told that I needed my current employer's permission to take the job and because I went behind their backs to get it that if I took it I would be black balled for life. I was expected to be totally loyal and they would give me the same loyalty. That I did not know about that situation was the only reason why I kept my job (for a while). The share bubble burst and everyone in the firm was given 6 months salary when the firm closed down. To the end they were loyal to me. A stock brokers motto is "My word is my bond."

Midlife crisis Nartispuddlejumper, Bureau of Toxicity

2,282 posts · joined May 2003 ·

#528864
The same thing happened to my Wife,10 minutes before knock off she was called into the bosses office and told that things were slow and she would not be needed after today.

Have had a lot of people we know have had this happen since little johnny's new laws

But in the end she got another job a few weeeks later that pays better and she loves.

So look on the bright side you will get a better job.

Like us though you may have to tighten the belt a bit.

Good luck.

Marc
If you can't laugh at yourself you can't laugh at anyone else! Because life is to short not to LAUGH

HGFS Wolfsburg Wizard

531 posts · joined Feb 2005 ·

#528920
Bizarre wrote:I am sorry i missed you at ARBS

Stay with the industry. It is a good one. There are lots of different areas to work in.


Barry
Yeah I was there on the Wednesday so didn't see you. I'm really wondering now, why they even bothered sending me, they must have known a couple of weeks ago that they were going to give me the axe.

Dunno about staying in the industry, maybe its good in Sydney, but its shithouse in Adelaide, everyone is always cutting each others throats for work. I've thought for a long time that Adelaide just isn't big enough to have all the major suppliers competing for work. There's just bugger all on compared to the eastern states, I've seen that first hand. And what work there is here, it's small jobs done at lower prices per kW than anywhere else.
last celtic warrior wrote:Mate, don't let your old boss firing you slow you down, eh. All that work you've been putting into strengthening their market position, well it's time to start putting that directly into the customers as your own boss. The customers will show their appreciation by paying your morgtage and car payments...

What it comes down to is, if you have confidence in what you can do and the customers have confidence in what you can do, you're in business. And don't feel guilty about stealing customers away from the company you were working for up til now, they've shown no allegience to you, so why would you owe any to them... As far as "your" customers are concerned, you were looking after them, and you can keep on doing that with or without some "boss" getting in the middle all the time.
I was working for a manufacturer so I can't go directly into competition with them, they've got about 120 factory workers in Aus and about double that in NZ, its a pretty big operation. Just not enough market in the crumby backwater known as Adelaide to support the costs of the branch as it was.

What I can do is use the good relationships I have with customers to either get a job with one of them as a Project Manager (what I used to do) or do contract drafting for them, apparently the industry is very short of drafters, and people are waiting a month or more to get a drafter which is a major pain when a building site is progressing.

Just don't know if I want to stay in it or do something different altogether. You know, change is as good as a holiday. I'd like to do something in the car industry but that's kind of in tatters too at the moment.

What to do?????:jesus
1954 Oval long term project going nowhere
1958 Beetle drag car project
1959 Beetle project I need to sell one day
1969 Squareback

HGFS Wolfsburg Wizard

531 posts · joined Feb 2005 ·

#528922
Better go get the 64 finished, it's gonna have to be my daily driver now.

Company car goes back Monday
1954 Oval long term project going nowhere
1958 Beetle drag car project
1959 Beetle project I need to sell one day
1969 Squareback

squizy Thinking about another dub...maybe

4,082 posts · joined Dec 2002 ·

#528923
There's no such thing as loyalty anymore. That all changed when employees became widgets, not people, and profits and shareholders became the focus. Good luck with finding something else. Sometimes things like this aren't meant to happen.

On the counter....I'd love a redundancy after 22 years service....$$$

Doug Sweetman Nil Bastardo Carborundum

2,128 posts · joined Sep 2002 ·

#528933
Firstly, commisserations on your new found position - though it does sound like you have the drive and ability to sort out another position.

You could always (seeing as it sounds like you are a qualified drafty) try and get into the heavy industry area - ie Engineering houses etc, I know the oil industry and mining industry are massively short of proffessionals...... who knows you may end up in a better position than you were before....

All else fails, move to Perth. The only unemployed people in Perth are those who WANT to be unemployed I think......

66deluxe Custom Title Time!

1,593 posts · joined Aug 2005 ·

#528937
I'm so glad i got the job i have now, not too many people in OZ are trained in Gas turbine engines overhaul and maintenance. I've gone from being a low paid unrespected chef to a well paid very respected aviation engineer, i think the trick is to find something you love doing and be the best and most knowledgable that you can. It would be very hard for my boss to sack me at the moment. And yes Dickhead Howards laws do suck, friends that i had in hospitality are doing it tough now. Cheers Damo.
This is my Volkswagen, there are many like it, but this one is mine. Without me my Volkswagen is useless, without my Volkswagen, I am useless.

61 Karmann Ghia 2110cc type1 w Los Panchito's
66 Deluxe Beetle 2270 type 4
10 Subaru WRX Impreza

mscabrio Cabriolet Queen

2,308 posts · joined Jan 2004 ·

#529006
Trust me things happen for a reason. The new IR laws suck big time, but in the end you will find something better.
🤘

h fractals - an ever changing lifestyle

7,671 posts · joined Feb 2005 ·

#529010
SVW-054 wrote:Better go get the 64 finished, it's gonna have to be my daily driver now.

Company car goes back Monday
well then you better give it a decent send off over the week-end as you wont have to worry about it on monday..
good luck with it though..
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