Rett Mikhal
Captain
I think you're better off never announcing that.
How is the economy treating you?
- Thread starter Rett Mikhal
- Start date
I'm not trying to be a prat, but I believe that's the whole point, people stopped borrowing because they were worried and it snowballed, and now people still don't feel confident enough to jump back in.
I've been reading that automakers, at least Ford, were. I'd have to double check though.....
As for me, it's been almost a solid year of steady mandatory overtime. Pays OK, but I hardly see my family...
It's been an OK year for us. Hubby is working like a dog at his job at the University. His is the main income, so things are good there.
My hours, however have been cut to HELL. This time last year, I was working about 3 and a half days a week on average. Now I'm lucky to get 7 days in a MONTH. It blows. Granted, we also have a new HR person who can't make a schedule to save her life, and everyone is complaining about the hours. They say it will pick back up in the Fall, which is always our busy time.
We shall see.
I like my job. I work from my home office and do all the "supervising" over the phone or on the computer. Most of the time, the work is pretty easy. Hubby, however, wants me to look for another job if the hours don't turn around soon.
But our mutual fund is finally making a good profit, and because we never spent much in the past, we have (in the past year and a half) bought a new car, a new bed, a new headboard and new sidetables. All of it well within our budget, too. Things are pretty good.
My hours, however have been cut to HELL. This time last year, I was working about 3 and a half days a week on average. Now I'm lucky to get 7 days in a MONTH. It blows. Granted, we also have a new HR person who can't make a schedule to save her life, and everyone is complaining about the hours. They say it will pick back up in the Fall, which is always our busy time.
We shall see.
I like my job. I work from my home office and do all the "supervising" over the phone or on the computer. Most of the time, the work is pretty easy. Hubby, however, wants me to look for another job if the hours don't turn around soon.
But our mutual fund is finally making a good profit, and because we never spent much in the past, we have (in the past year and a half) bought a new car, a new bed, a new headboard and new sidetables. All of it well within our budget, too. Things are pretty good.
We're doing okay.
On one hand, our house has lost so much equity that we'll never leave it. At least not in the foreseeable future.
On the other hand our jobs are pretty secure. I work for a subcontractor of the VA, primarily with homeless veterans. There's been a big push by the Obama Administration to get all vets off the streets in 5 years, so a lot of money is coming in from the feds.
On the third hand, our state and county contracts have gone completely in the crapper. California is uber-screwed, budget-wise. No prisons, no treatment, no cops, no parole agents, no jobs. It's going to be like the Wild West out here pretty soon.
On one hand, our house has lost so much equity that we'll never leave it. At least not in the foreseeable future.
On the other hand our jobs are pretty secure. I work for a subcontractor of the VA, primarily with homeless veterans. There's been a big push by the Obama Administration to get all vets off the streets in 5 years, so a lot of money is coming in from the feds.
On the third hand, our state and county contracts have gone completely in the crapper. California is uber-screwed, budget-wise. No prisons, no treatment, no cops, no parole agents, no jobs. It's going to be like the Wild West out here pretty soon.
But hopefully that will change soon. I just finished my pharmacy technician class on Saturday and I got an A in it. I started my 120 hour externship today as well. Once that is finished I can get licensed and hopefully find employment. Now I am off to the Lounge to complain about my day and how I don't wanna be a pharmacy technician anymore.
*taps foot* I'm still waiting for that lounge update...
Congrats on aceing the course! I know the drug-stores and supermarkets up here are crying out for pharmacy techs, so I hope it's a good job market in your area too.
Go where the jobs are. Here, there's lots of pharm tech courses, and techs are a dime a dozen. GOOD techs are much harder to find--and places still will hire an "experienced" bad tech over a promising graduate.
Hubby (a pharmacist) teaches a course at the local City College. Most of his students don't impress him too much. If he says, "Highlight these sentences in your book. They will be on the test," some ask "Can't you just give us an outline?" They don't want an outline of the course--he gives them that. What they are asking for are his notes so they don't have to actually take any.
But there are some that really deserve to go far, and he'll pretty much go extra steps to help them. He's told a few that they should go to pharmacy school instead of limiting their future income to tech level pay.
I know how you feel Randi. My girlfriend is a long time E-Bay seller. She is a thrift shop genius and can turn three dollars worth of nothing into a $50 sale. Mostly clothes. We sold designer jeans for a long time to get through the lean years, but that market has kind of dried up a little. She got her aunt starting selling too. For awhile she was making some good money, but has had some lean months lately. Of course her aunt always panics if her sales change from just the month prior.Sometimes she finds really good deals, sometimes it is just nothing. One tip. When Novemeber comes get the ugliest green and red sweaters you can find. Those go like hotcakes.
Heh, that's funny! Thanks for the tip! Another problem with ebay is that EVERYONE is selling their shit now. Use to be you could go to a yard sale and find great stuff to turn around on ebay. But people are putting their stuff up themselves....so finding good stuff at the sales is becoming rare. I'm barely listing anything these days. It's just not worth the effort. I keep hoping it will pick up again.
WHOA! Interesting on the sting operations! I've not put anything up for sale on Craigslist mostly because i don't want to invite strangers to my home, but i have bought a few things for myself (always bringing my husband with me).
You could be right though about ebay. They have pretty much shit on the little guys and their fees are just absurd now. It's tough to make a buck there now.
The old days were really amazing though.
Pretty good so far, but I've just made probably the biggest career decision I'll ever make. I currently have a well-paying, secure job with an excellent pension scheme and a moderately easy career path (provided I'd be willing to move to another part of the country in a year's time).
Instead, I drafted my letter of resignation earlier today and will mail it in later this week. I simply no longer want to be someone's employee.
I had planned to do this around this time next year anyway instead of looking to move to another part of the country but some bureaucratic stuff cropped up recently that emphasised to me that I really was only waiting around in order to collect another year's salary and in some ways, I was missing out maximising other opportunities by delaying the resignation.
So come August (provided they don't insist on my serving my full notice), I'll be free! I have about four or five other business projects to keep me busy though (a couple related to my profession, the others separate), and I have some savings to tide me over what are likely to be slightly leaner years than I'm used to (I've deliberately stocked up on bespoke clothes and fine wine over the past few years, to sustain me through a couple of tighter years!).
Exciting times.
Instead, I drafted my letter of resignation earlier today and will mail it in later this week. I simply no longer want to be someone's employee.
I had planned to do this around this time next year anyway instead of looking to move to another part of the country but some bureaucratic stuff cropped up recently that emphasised to me that I really was only waiting around in order to collect another year's salary and in some ways, I was missing out maximising other opportunities by delaying the resignation.
So come August (provided they don't insist on my serving my full notice), I'll be free! I have about four or five other business projects to keep me busy though (a couple related to my profession, the others separate), and I have some savings to tide me over what are likely to be slightly leaner years than I'm used to (I've deliberately stocked up on bespoke clothes and fine wine over the past few years, to sustain me through a couple of tighter years!).
Exciting times.
wow! 
Holdfast. Good luck!
Holdfast. Good luck!
kind of wierd for me and the other half. her family sold off a takeaway place they owned as it was starting to lose money the share out was pretty good so that's been stashed for a rainy day.
Also at work out of a work force of 200 10 were layed off while about 20% got a payrise, luckily I was one of the 20%. so all in all it's ok so far anyways
Also at work out of a work force of 200 10 were layed off while about 20% got a payrise, luckily I was one of the 20%. so all in all it's ok so far anyways
wow!
Thanks!
Right now, I do have a little bit of trepidation about it, but a whole heap more excitement. I'm pretty hopeful!
And hell, if it all goes horribly wrong, I can always return to a similar job to what I do now, in 5 or 10 years time or whatever. At least I'll have tried to be free!
I've been pretty fortunate. I'm in school, and I landed a part-time job working in HR at a tech company that pays well. I figure by the time the bar exam comes around, the market will have rebounded and I'll be fine.
I think the economy is picking up, at least in the software industry. Just in the past two weeks, we've given everyone a raise and hired 6 new people.
I think the economy is picking up, at least in the software industry. Just in the past two weeks, we've given everyone a raise and hired 6 new people.
Rett Mikhal
Captain
I can tell you for a fact it is picking up. I get 30 times as many "software engineer" jobs in my email than I do "mechanical engineer" jobs. Apparently head hunters don't understand they're on two completely different planes of existence.
A
Amaris
Guest
The economy beat me down, cut the brake lines on my car, stole my wallet and left me in a ditch.
I lost my job of 7 years in December of 2008, started a new job exactly 60 days later. It doubled my salary but I had to move halfway across the country for it, and my family didn't come with me. So, it kinda sucks from that angle, but at least I have a good job with a stable company. And they gave me a raise about a month ago.
I'm still aware that the economy really sucks for a lot of people, though. I have very few friends and family members who have weathered this without losing a job, and many are still unemployed with no prospects. It is a very bad time to be coming straight out of school and into the workforce--nobody wants to train you, they want an experienced person they can contract for 6 months and then kick you to the curb.
I'm still aware that the economy really sucks for a lot of people, though. I have very few friends and family members who have weathered this without losing a job, and many are still unemployed with no prospects. It is a very bad time to be coming straight out of school and into the workforce--nobody wants to train you, they want an experienced person they can contract for 6 months and then kick you to the curb.
wow!
Thanks!
Right now, I do have a little bit of trepidation about it, but a whole heap more excitement. I'm pretty hopeful!
And hell, if it all goes horribly wrong, I can always return to a similar job to what I do now, in 5 or 10 years time or whatever. At least I'll have tried to be free!
Yeah, sometimes you just have to take the leap of faith.
Hey, it worked for me moving to Canada
I work as a freelance graphic artist/designer and I have been getting the shit kicked out of me. I specialize in print media like brochures, fliers, product labels. My specialty is point-of-sale displays. But companies are cutting back on all of those things and just reusing what they have. For the last year I have been asked to "fix" the old stuff rather than being commissioned to design anything new. Two years ago I even fell back on my previous career in hotels as a second job to get me by but they have taken a beating too. Jobs in both fields are so scarce right now that I have been looking for entry level work just to get some income flowing.
As for how it has treated me, in the last three years I have had to sell my house and move to three different states for work. Add in loosing a design contract two months ago with a sign shop due to the floods in Nashville... I am running out of miracles here.
As for how it has treated me, in the last three years I have had to sell my house and move to three different states for work. Add in loosing a design contract two months ago with a sign shop due to the floods in Nashville... I am running out of miracles here.
