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Dead woman walking...WWYD?

So in a very short nutshell, 2 days before Sandy my department was eliminated but my boss stuck me somewhere else through the end of the fiscal year (3/31) until she could figure out what to do for me (awesome, right?)..I work in a Senior level marketing position for a large, foreign corporation that has been struggling a bit and the foreign HQ made the decision without telling her.

During Sandy, my house was severely damaged and the stress of having to move, rebuild, and move back in knowing my last day of work could be 3/31 was incredible (hair falling out, etc).

Mid-march my boss PROMOTES me and give me a new senior-related web position (which I don't love, but hey I am still getting buckets of money and fixing the Money Pit that is my home).  She drags her feet on announcing.  Finally does it at end of April in team meeting, but not in a company email (work for Fortune 500 company).

Then she has a p*ssing match fight with a guy from HQ because she is trying to figure out her own situation/promotion, plays chicken with the project, and the guy pulls all the funding.

Apparently even though she promised my position was no longer tied to project funding...I find out two days before Memorial day it is and she is going to have to lay me off.  I'm devastated.  I calm myself down and call her that Friday and lay out all the ways I was deceived with this new position and how it is damaging to my career to announce a promotion and then lay me off without warning.  It works and now she is giving me "time".  How much time I don't know, but the writing is on the wall.  I get paid too much to quit and I don't want to start my "clock" before I have something lined up.  But I was already the sad girl with her department eliminated...at this point it is beyond demoralizing and I am so anxious to even be at work.

If you made it this far, here is my question.  I am senior.  I get paid a lot.  I have had a job offer for half (still very livable with DH's salary) which I originally turned down but I am going to meet the CEO on Monday.  I am in later rounds of another (start-up) company which is dragging it's feet on the process.  The driving force is the fact that DH and I are trying to get PG with #2 and I would like a better work/life balance (which the half salary may create).

--Do I take way lower pay and ASK to now be laid off (4 months severance, vacation days, prorated bonus)?

--Am I insane to take this cut without even being PG yet?

Re: Dead woman walking...WWYD?

  • Wow alot to take in a short amound of time. I think for your sanity if the lower paying job is going to give you a better balance that would be a better choice. Being overly stress and worked also can have a negative impact on TTC and early pregnancy. I would save some of the severance pay and what not until you and your DH can get a budget worked out with new salary.
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  • Wow!! Sorry to hear about your house/job situation. I agree with the other commenter that the lower paying salary would probably be better if you can manage alright with both your incomes. I work contracts and I would take a pay cut to have more job security over my current position of a 31Dec13 contract ending.

    I do think that you should try to get something set up in stone before asking to be laid off in the event that neither option that you have now panned out. I dont think its crazy at all, planning ahead or even trying to plan ahead doesnt hurt. If your worried about the pay cut try to collect the larger paycheck for as long as possible that way its not all of a sudden and go through as much of the on-boarding/hire process of the new company before starting as possible so you can jump right in and not have to worry about waiting for a start date.

    Good luck!! :-)

    ~E~
  • Thanks!  I am absolutely going to try and have the new job align with asking to be laid off.  Feel like it is ticking forward and I would like to control my exit...my boss has pretty much told me flat out that it is definite.

    The half salary CEO is a bit of a nutjob and the company is known for turnover, but if I can manage severance and get this new job for a year, I would be looking to take off 6 months to a year or do freelance (I work in media).

    I have a meeting with the one company on Monday and told the other start-up company (which was dragging its feet) that I needed to know what was going on and they scheduled a meeting for Friday at 2 pm.

    Fingers crossed this works out...I need some good job vibes.

  • So the crazy lady offered me the position.  It's still a huge cut, but still a lot of money and a great title.

    The start-up wants to offer me he job and get on the phone tomorrow to discuss timing, but they canceled the Friday interview about an hour before (and RIGHT as I was leaving for the subway)...I was so annoyed that I told them I could ONLY meet on Monday at 9 am, before the Crazy Lady....and they said fine.

    I now have to figure out how best to pitch this to my current boss and have her just lay me off.  The stress level has been unbelievable, so I am going to go with that and hope that she bites...we are talking a large sum of money that would make life and my Sandy debt SO much easier.  I don't plan on telling her I have something lined up. 

  • Ok, honest answer ... I wouldn't take either, I would sit tight and relaunch the search. Milk your current situation for as much as you can. I'm in marketing too, also senior, and I'm seeing a surge of opportunities in NJ/NY on LinkedIn and elsewhere. Neither of the roles you're considering feel sustainable long term to me, and I'd rather that your next job be AWESOME and give you the stability you want. When is your bonus cycle? Every week you last, your prorated share increases, right?
    Oct '09 - Aug '10: start TTC, dx MFI + slight PCOS = IVF. Nov '10, IVF#1: 15 retrieved, 10 fert, 3dt, 3 @ 8-cell. BFP! Dec '10: 1 baby, 1 heartbeat! Emergency surgery for ovarian torsion on Christmas Eve. Feb '11: Missed m/c at 14 weeks. Traumatic D&E. Baby girl, chromosomally perfect. Baptized her and named her Samantha. Spent two months in an emotional fog. Apr '11: Got my nerve back. IVF#2: 16 retrieved, 10 fert, 3dt, 3 @ 7-8 cell. BFP. Second beta failed to double. Prepared for m/c when they scanned me at 6w0d on June 6, 2011 and saw little miracles. My girl-girl twins were born on Dec 3, 2011! Lilypie Pregnancy tickers
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