Would I be mad to walk away from a job during a recession?

[mark_t50]

Hi,

I've been working in IT at the same place for nearly 10 years now. When I first started I loved the job, however for the last 3 - 4 years we've been going through a constant cycle of redundancies. People have come and gone, colleagues who became friends have lost their jobs, it's got to the stage where I sometimes feel physically sick at the thoughts of going into work. I love the people I work with, but I've come to hate the company I work for. Everytime a team meeting is called you can just see everyone's heads go down as we expect the worst.

A lot of our work is being best shored to India and we are being expected to train our Indian colleagues to effectively do our jobs! We are going to have to lose even more members of our team and have already been told that there will be compulsary redundancies (I've been told I'm safe for now). Given the current economic climate and job market, would it be stupid to ask the boss if I could be made redundant and just walk away ? A part of me thinks I should just be grateful to have a job, but then another part of me thinks it has reached the stage where I can't take the constant threat of redundancy and workplace conditions anymore.

Anyway, sorry for the depressing rant, but what do you think ? Do I just need to get over myself and be thankful for having a job, or do I tell them to stick it and take redundancy ?

 

[me227]

Look for another job while you still have this one. I wouldn't leave it unless you can afford it and really really want to.

 

[rmuir]

Would it not be easier to hunt a new job and continue working?

How would you explain the leaving of your current employer to any prospective employer? How easy would a new job be to find?

Would seem a little rash to leave a job with nothing lined up.

 

[Duke]

Start looking and applying for new jobs and see how it goes. Don't walk out until you have something else to go to.

 

[Vonhelmet]

The obvious advice is not to walk without something else lined up.

 

[DampCat]

You'd be mad to walk out of a job without having another lined up in any economic climate, in my opinion.

 

[rainbow6six]

You might get lucky and find your new job, then if you time it right you can get made redundant too!


Perhaps a bit too wishfull thinking?

 

[mark_t50]

Sorry, I should have explained better. Basically four members of the team will be made redundant at the end of October, at the minute I'm not one of them. However I get on well with the boss so I'm sure I could request that I be made redundant. If I miss this round then I'm not sure when the next round of redundancies will be.

It would mean I'd get to walk away with about 18 grand to tide me over while looking for another job. I'd probably take a month or two off work and then start looking.

Maybe it's just pie in the sky stuff, I'll be honest, I've not been out of work for nearly 17 years and only ever worked for two companies. When I was made redundant from my first company I finished work there on Friday and started work here on the Monday. I guess I've just got no idea what it's like out there looking for a job these days, although I'm guessing it's pretty tough.

Thanks for the feedback though, it's basically what my friends are saying which is that I need to stay here and cling on until they push me, or I find another job.

 

[Janesy B]

If the £18k was a definite I'd take it and walk.

 

[Quint]

Sort a new job out 1st, don't tell work and ask for redundancy. £'s in.

 

[Duff-Man]

How much would the redundancy be?

If it's reasonable, I would be very tempted to take it. This is your life, and if going in to work every day makes you feel miserable, then that just isn't acceptible. The redundancy pay should tide you over until you can find a new job. Sure, we're going through tough economic times, but jobs aren't impossible to find (I started a new job Aug 1st as a random and pointless example).


edit - just read your second post. I say go for it. £18k is a decent payoff, and will give you plenty of leeway in finding your next job. Staying in a job you hate shouldn't be an option, in my eyes.

 

[mjt]

Start looking and applying for new jobs and see how it goes. Don't walk out until you have something else to go to.

 

[rmuir]

Well the redundancy pay-off changes it, but only slightly.

The concern would still be there, for me at least, that alternative employment was still easy to achieve. 18k sounds like a large wedge, but a couple of months 'off' then maybe a couple job hunting would soon take a sizeable chunk out of that, that is assuming you have rent/mortgage to maintain.

Again, however much the idea of a few months downtime would appeal, I would prefer to have another job lined up and have the 18k redundancy. You could always inform any new employer that you have a pre-booked 2 week break at some point in the near future and use some of that 18k for a nice holiday.

 

[Kodiak]

If there is anything that working life has taught me, its that you never leave a job unless you have another job to goto.

In the past, when Ive left a job then started to look, its taken months to find another job. The first time I got made redundant, I got only £2.5k. Even though I got another job after 3 or so months, that money had gone and I was starting to get desperate. Its not a good position to be in.

Recently I got made reduntant, however I had found another job that started the week after. Redundantcy money plus new job equals massive amounts of awsome

 

[leaskovski]

Sorry, I should have explained better. Basically four members of the team will be made redundant at the end of October, at the minute I'm not one of them. However I get on well with the boss so I'm sure I could request that I be made redundant. If I miss this round then I'm not sure when the next round of redundancies will be.

It would mean I'd get to walk away with about 18 grand to tide me over while looking for another job. I'd probably take a month or two off work and then start looking.

Maybe it's just pie in the sky stuff, I'll be honest, I've not been out of work for nearly 17 years and only ever worked for two companies. When I was made redundant from my first company I finished work there on Friday and started work here on the Monday. I guess I've just got no idea what it's like out there looking for a job these days, although I'm guessing it's pretty tough.

Thanks for the feedback though, it's basically what my friends are saying which is that I need to stay here and cling on until they push me, or I find another job.

I wouldnt fart about wasting time and getting out of the habbit of working. If you do take the money and run, go on holiday for a week maybe, but then start looking for work a soon as possible. You will be ammazed how fast that money disappears.

 

[Manlove is my forte]

Hi,

I've been working in IT at the same place for nearly 10 years now. When I first started I loved the job, however for the last 3 - 4 years we've been going through a constant cycle of redundancies. People have come and gone, colleagues who became friends have lost their jobs, it's got to the stage where I sometimes feel physically sick at the thoughts of going into work. I love the people I work with, but I've come to hate the company I work for. Everytime a team meeting is called you can just see everyone's heads go down as we expect the worst.

A lot of our work is being best shored to India and we are being expected to train our Indian colleagues to effectively do our jobs! We are going to have to lose even more members of our team and have already been told that there will be compulsary redundancies (I've been told I'm safe for now). Given the current economic climate and job market, would it be stupid to ask the boss if I could be made redundant and just walk away ? A part of me thinks I should just be grateful to have a job, but then another part of me thinks it has reached the stage where I can't take the constant threat of redundancy and workplace conditions anymore.

Anyway, sorry for the depressing rant, but what do you think ? Do I just need to get over myself and be thankful for having a job, or do I tell them to stick it and take redundancy ?

Are you working for a company that had a 3 letter acronym that was bought by a company with a 2 letter acronym?

 

[Hitman_Leon]

Exporting jobs to Indian's, Your company=Fail, you should not have to train your own replacements its sick and twisted but it happens too much these days.

Its always going to be easier to find work while in work, in my experience, if you can find a new job go for it, if you are confident enough to take redundancy take it but do you think you can find a job quick enough?

 

[mark_t50]

Are you working for a company that had a 3 letter acronym that was bought by a company with a 2 letter acronym?

Lol, I couldn't possibly comment (nods head) god, I hope you're not my boss

Thanks for the advise everyone, I think I obviously need to take a bit of time and think about it. I'm probably feeling a bit depressed about work at the minute so probably not the best time to be making these kind of decisions.

 

[Manlove is my forte]

Lol, I couldn't possibly comment (nods head) god, I hope you're not my boss

Thanks for the advise everyone, I think I obviously need to take a bit of time and think about it. I'm probably feeling a bit depressed about work at the minute so probably not the best time to be making these kind of decisions.

Just be glad in the knowledge that there are many more people sitting in the same boat as yourself and most of us are considering the swim to shore.

The question I have repeatedly asked in the last 3 months is "Who will be in the worse position, those that get the push, or those that are kept on to keep the ship afloat?". My workload has certainly increased since the last round of CR, we are under even more pressure from our customers and still our team has "further scope for reduction"

It seems they are trying to sunset more than just our old brand.

 

[mattheman]

"being expected to train our Indian colleagues " train them the min, never ever pass down your skills to others, you need to make your company dependent on you.