Transitional Meeting

We met at 10:30 a.m. to do the transitional meeting. I had most of my car packed up by then and just had one bag to take with me when I left. We went over the Executive Staff statistics that I had been preparing the previous five months, the Employee Opinion Survey project that I had led. We were in the process of getting our hands around the results and unfortunately, I won't be able to see what the company will do with them. We discussed the two requisitions that were currently open, one active and one not. I handed over the employee services paperwork for the Education Reimbursement and PC Buy programs. Somebody owed money from the flu shots two weeks before and other miscellaneous items were discussed.

Then, we got to the holiday party. Yes, folks, the business unit holiday party that I organized for January 24th with a budget of $34,000 (more than half my salary) is going on as planned.

This was the most difficult part of the discussion and I could feel myself getting really angry and bitter. This company is going to lay off 50 people, but the holiday parties are still happening! SERIOUSLY. Most of my friends are at sensible companies who cancelled these events.

Lesson #3 - As a company, you should get rid of the "extra" things before you start getting rid of people!

I couldn't even look my boss in the eye during this part of the discussion. When we finished, she asked if I had any questions. No. She reiterated what she had said that day before - this wasn't performance based, it was strictly cost cutting. I had done really great things there and she had planned on me continuing to do so. She thanked me for being professional during the event, stated that she would be happy to be a reference for me, and said to keep in touch. She asked again if I had any questions. No, but at this point, it was obvious that she didn't have my final check. I confirmed that with her. GREAT.

Lesson #4 - Have the person's final check with you when laying them off. They have enough to worry about without having to worry about that.

It was 11 a.m. I got out of there. On the way out, I asked our very nice security guard to help me out with my one bag I had. As he walked me out, I told him that I had gotten laid off, and that he couldn't tell anyone about it. He was shocked. He gave me a big hug.

I drove away.

The Next Morning

I returned to work/former workplace on Wednesday morning. I had cried a little bit before I left, but Lucas reminded me to "keep it professional", which I resolved to do. I got to work a little before 8 a.m. and started to pack up my stuff, make a list of transition items, and finish the last item I had on my plate.

My boss got there a little bit after I did and asked me how I was doing. I said OK. She said that we would get together later that morning to discuss transitional tasks. I said fine. She then went into her office and I continued to pack up. She then said, "You are going to love Wicked!" She had went to Wicked the night before with her sister-in-law and knew that I was going on Sunday with my mom. I was incredulous. What the heck am I supposed to say to that? I really wanted to respond with something snarky, such as "I don't think that I will love it...now that I don't have a job!" but instead just responded with a totally half-hearted "Umm...yeah."

Lesson #2: When you are laying someone off, THINK before you speak.

She didn't say a word to me for a long time after that.

However, the next thing we did talk about was somewhat equally as curious. She said that my co-worker in CA that I needed to talk to do some training would be in at 9 a.m. PST, 11 a.m. CST. To which I responded, "Well, I guess I can call her from home." My mom had offered on Tuesday to come over on Wednesday, but I had initially turned her down. However, after a rough morning, I called her on my way into the office and we agreed she would be there around 11:30 a.m. Lucas had offered to work from home in the afternoon, but I wanted him to be at work. We need at least one paycheck in our household, right? I had absolutely NO plans on being in the office past 11. My boss seemed slightly surprised by my response; did she really expect me to stay there for most of the day? I had the mentality of being in and then OUT.

We had also discussed me being able to say goodbye to people that I wanted to. She also told me at that time that I wasn't going to be able to do that what with the pending actions on Thursday and all. I could communicate with them after 3 p.m. on Tuesday. This made me feel pretty bad; I couldn't even say goodbye to people! She then mentioned that she had a meeting at 10 a.m. and a meeting at 11 a.m. and wanted to make sure we got a chance to have our transitional meeting. I suggested 10:30 - 11 a.m.; she asked, "Well, is that going to be enough time?"

I'm going to MAKE it enough time, I thought. She went into her meeting and I packed up my car. She had offered to help me, but geez, can we say awkward?

Laid Off - Part II

I don't remember much very clearly after that. You always hear that people shut down after getting that kind of news, and I did. Plus, I had been on the other end of two previous rounds of layoffs at the same company and knew the drill. My boss told me that I could leave and then come back tomorrow to transition some of my tasks. I took her up on that.

Lesson #1 - When you get laid off, don't go home knowing you are going to have to go back. Pack up your things and do the transition duties that day. It was HORRIBLE having to return to the office yesterday.

I called Lucas immediately and he said that he would meet me at home. He asked me how it went. I said that I was proud that I didn't cry in the meeting, though I was certainly crying then! I called my mom and my grandparents on the way home. All three were very reassuring that this crisis, like other crises, would pass. I called a friend of mine who I have class with on Tuesday nights and let her know what happened. She said that I was the third person she had talked to that day that had gotten laid off!

Lucas and I spent most of the afternoon on the couch - me crying and he giving me Kleenexes, telling me that everything would work out. I e-mailed my professor and told him I wouldn't be in class that night before I left work. I also e-mailed my group members on a group project and told them the same. Imagine my surprise when one of my classmates responded to my e-mail and said he had been laid off the previous week.

The rest of the afternoon and evening was spent on the computer, notifying HR contacts of my prediciment and applying for jobs. I had a hard time not doing anything, so I figured I might as well get started on the job search.