I Have a Job
I've worked for the same institution for 27 years (this coming September), although I've worked at various jobs in various departments during that time. The only break was when I was laid off for a brief time and had to take a job with a *ahem* lesser entity, but I managed to get back in with my institution in only eight months, so as far as the institution is concerned for purposes of years of service, seniority and the like, there was no break.
In that time, I have viscerally hated the place I worked, and I have loved it. Right now, in the place I am and have been for quite a while, I really love my job. I like the place, I like the people, I (generally) like the work. I am perfectly content to remain here for the rest of my career until retirement.
Of course, times are tough all around, and it's no different here. My institution has been facing serious budgetary issues for a while, and based on projections, that's only going to get worse. That's just the way it goes.
Today, we all got word that some of our colleagues are not going to have their contracts renewed when they expire in a few months. I don't know anyone personally who has been hit by this, but I do know people who were laid off in an earlier round of cuts.
A couple of weeks ago, we all got an email giving us a link to a detailed, complex survey commissioned by the institution. The purpose was for staff members to pick out the tasks they perform at their jobs and assign a percentage of the time they spend on these tasks. It came with a massive Excel spreadsheet with information and calculators and that sort of thing. Working the spreadsheet took quite a while — Is that something I do? It's kind of what I do, but not really, maybe? What percentage of my day do I spend doing this thing I only do for a few hours a week every six months? — but the survey itself was quite simple, as the spreadsheet pooped out all the numbers that it needed. No one was happy about this thing. No one — not even the boss of the department in which I work — had any idea if he did it right or not, or even what "right" means here.
It's stressful.
I'm stressed because I'm 55 years old, so having to find a new job would be problematic, to say the least. I'm stressed because I have health issues and rely on my good, employer-subsidized health insurance to get by. My wife has severe health issues, so much so that she had to go onto disability. She has Medicare as a backup, but relies primarily on my health insurance.
Our finances our good. We have a fair amount of money saved, and the only debt we have is our house, which they tell me is "good" debt. The institution offers pretty good transition assistance for the laid off, especially people like me who have been here for so long. Even so, I don't know how long we could get by if I were to lose this job, how much time I would have to find another one.
So, I'm stressed. Mind you, there has been no word about any layoffs other than the contracts that aren't going to be renewed. And, by chance, the department I work in is rather better off than most because we have our own large endowment, so there's that. Even so — stressed.
I just needed to find an outlet for this stress, put it out there in the world in the hopes that it will fade enough for me to get by.
Thanks for listening. Best wishes.
In that time, I have viscerally hated the place I worked, and I have loved it. Right now, in the place I am and have been for quite a while, I really love my job. I like the place, I like the people, I (generally) like the work. I am perfectly content to remain here for the rest of my career until retirement.
Of course, times are tough all around, and it's no different here. My institution has been facing serious budgetary issues for a while, and based on projections, that's only going to get worse. That's just the way it goes.
Today, we all got word that some of our colleagues are not going to have their contracts renewed when they expire in a few months. I don't know anyone personally who has been hit by this, but I do know people who were laid off in an earlier round of cuts.
A couple of weeks ago, we all got an email giving us a link to a detailed, complex survey commissioned by the institution. The purpose was for staff members to pick out the tasks they perform at their jobs and assign a percentage of the time they spend on these tasks. It came with a massive Excel spreadsheet with information and calculators and that sort of thing. Working the spreadsheet took quite a while — Is that something I do? It's kind of what I do, but not really, maybe? What percentage of my day do I spend doing this thing I only do for a few hours a week every six months? — but the survey itself was quite simple, as the spreadsheet pooped out all the numbers that it needed. No one was happy about this thing. No one — not even the boss of the department in which I work — had any idea if he did it right or not, or even what "right" means here.
It's stressful.
I'm stressed because I'm 55 years old, so having to find a new job would be problematic, to say the least. I'm stressed because I have health issues and rely on my good, employer-subsidized health insurance to get by. My wife has severe health issues, so much so that she had to go onto disability. She has Medicare as a backup, but relies primarily on my health insurance.
Our finances our good. We have a fair amount of money saved, and the only debt we have is our house, which they tell me is "good" debt. The institution offers pretty good transition assistance for the laid off, especially people like me who have been here for so long. Even so, I don't know how long we could get by if I were to lose this job, how much time I would have to find another one.
So, I'm stressed. Mind you, there has been no word about any layoffs other than the contracts that aren't going to be renewed. And, by chance, the department I work in is rather better off than most because we have our own large endowment, so there's that. Even so — stressed.
I just needed to find an outlet for this stress, put it out there in the world in the hopes that it will fade enough for me to get by.
Thanks for listening. Best wishes.
61-69, M
