Former employer won't let me go!

[travelover]

my favorite part about this movie is the thing where he has been working on a special marketing research thing or something, for many many years, and he carefully hands this off to his successor, which is housed in several boxes.

then as he is leaving the building for the last time, he turns to look down the alleyway and he sees all of his boxes of documents for the special project being thrown in the dumpster.

Sadly, I've been the guy loading the dumpster. We had a guy quit and his office sat empty for months. Finally my manager asked me to "clean it out". I tried to save anything that I thought might really be useful, but in reality it was more a collection of everything that he had ever worked on, than any treasure trove of knowledge.

 

[moreorless]

Yikes! Just came across your issue today & can only reiterate everyone else...Just be glad you are away from there! After that kind of send off I wouldn't be so kind to help him out...but if I did, the rate would be 2.5 times previous total salary & fringes etc...a typical rate for consulting.
Think about this though, as long as you hang around, your co-workers will not be given the opportunity to show that they are also capable & can carry the ball! So are you really being fair to your old co-workers by agreeing to hang around?
More likely, your old boss is probably a lazy jerk and having you around simply makes his life a whole lot easier. Having to make sure that work is carried on means this guy actually has to become acountable himself! By the way, the way this guy operates, I wouldn't trust him for a second! I retired January '09 & could not be happier. My humble opinion...stay as far away from him as you can!

 

[Westernskies]

Here's the link if anyone's interested:

View All Demotivators®

My personal favorite:

 

[FUEGO]

Sadly, I've been the guy loading the dumpster. We had a guy quit and his office sat empty for months. Finally my manager asked me to "clean it out". I tried to save anything that I thought might really be useful, but in reality it was more a collection of everything that he had ever worked on, than any treasure trove of knowledge.

When I'm tasked with this, I usually just pile all of the departing person's $hit into another empty cubicle. Not hard to find empty cubicles at the wasteland that is my employer. I occupy the only cube in my six cube area.

Need someone to pass the buck? I'm your guy!

 

[scrabbler1]

Fascinating thread to read.

As one who retired one year ago I was concerned about getting hit with questions about work things. The first thing I did was to not release my home email address like some others who had left the company over the years. A few friends at my office had it and my home phone #, but I made it clear to them that I did NOT want to be contacted with work-related questions. This was also due to the fact that I had mostly telecommuted for a few years before the company ended it so if they were not going pay me any more to work from home I surely wasn't going to it for FREE.

The only person who has called me at home from there is my best friend at the office, so when he has called once or twice we would talk about other (non-work) stuff before he would hit with me a simple question. He knows full well I don't want to have anything to do with anyone there at the office although my ire is directed at the company's top management and their policies as opposed to the management of my division (I let the poor HR guy have it at my hour-long exit interview).

 

[jimnjana]

Kabekew,

Don't know if they are still after you, but if they ever present a contract to you again, mark it up with some really outrageous terms and tell them that's what its gonna take for me to work there again.

Jim

 

[old woman]

The person who had my job before me retired. She spent months teaching me how to do it her way. The minute she retired I changed everything. She offered that I could call with questions but I wouldn't ever have done it.

I have simplifed the job, moved all paperwork to spreadsheets and keep my desk covered at all times so I look busy. Training my replacement shouldn't take very long but I don't want to do it since I will have to make it look hard.

The nice thing is during the 4 months my trainer spent training me she called in sick a lot and took vacations. You accrue sick and vacation every pay period so if you work at all in half a month you get more than ten more hours vacation and sick. I have over 400 hours vacation and 270 hours sick saved. I get paid 1/3 for sick over 192 each year and all vacation when leaving. Working 1/2 time or less for 4 months would get me 80 more hours paid time off. My replacement could do the basics in a week and I could make dental and doctor appointments at a half day each, catch a cold for a week and just be sick with headaches or something. I might only want to work 1 day a week for a few months to make the replacement wish I was gone.

 

[samclem]

I have simplifed the job, moved all paperwork to spreadsheets and keep my desk covered at all times so I look busy. Training my replacement shouldn't take very long but I don't want to do it since I will have to make it look hard.

. . . Working 1/2 time or less for 4 months would get me 80 more hours paid time off. My replacement could do the basics in a week and I could make dental and doctor appointments at a half day each, catch a cold for a week and just be sick with headaches or something. I might only want to work 1 day a week for a few months to make the replacement wish I was gone.

I think maybe you used to work in a cubicle near me. Anyway, sounds like you do stay busy working on the spreadsheets to optimize the work/nonwork ratio.

Well, if you are going to play hookie and call in "sick," be careful what you post online.

"Facebook page costs woman her benefits"

 

[Milton]

You accrue sick and vacation every pay period so if you work at all in half a month you get more than ten more hours vacation and sick. I have over 400 hours vacation and 270 hours sick saved. I get paid 1/3 for sick over 192 each year and all vacation when leaving. Working 1/2 time or less for 4 months would get me 80 more hours paid time off.

I'm guessing you work for a city or have some similar government job?

 

[NW-Bound]

This thread is depressing to me. Before one retires and still need to work, they should have a job that they enjoy. I think that after the retire day, one should still be friends with colleagues and bosses. It's pity that folks appear to hate their jobs and colleagues.

I have to agree. It might not be the posters' fault. But it is still sad. I enjoyed all my past works. I also liked the company of some coworkers. I may not agree 100% with my bosses, but we still talked face to face. It was often just the corporate bureaucracy BS that I hated.

Speaking of corporate BS, strangely, everybody hated it, but no one in my immediate higher chain of command would claim to be responsible for it. It must be similar to WW II Germany or the former Soviet bloc where a few tyrants at the top could rule the masses. We have seen recent examples in corporate America where a lousy CEO could really bring down the entire corp. No one below him dared to cry out loud that the emperor had no clothes.

 

[Rambler]

If my employer asked me to take a post-retirement seat on the Board of Directors I would do it. They are very highly paid for what (little) they do. In fact this is exactly what I am targeting. We have had several guys in positions at my level who have done it in the past. The longest lasted about 5 years. He was about my age or my target retirement age (51) when he moved out of full-time employment and onto the Board. We also have several who have joined our Board when they retired (early) from other companies at about that age, and my experience in this industry is tremendously more than any of our current Board have. Unfortunately we have no insiders on our Board at present, so maybe I am just dreaming. If so, maybe I will find something of a similar nature to do, allow me to keep my hand in the game but have (almost) all the free time I want anyway. I don't think my expertise lends itself well to consulting, except perhaps for finding M&A targets, which I enjoy and would do, for a (very steep) price. If I don't have any of the above opportunities, well, that will be fine, too.

R

 

[REWahoo]

If my employer asked me to take a post-retirement seat on the Board of Directors I would do it. They are very highly paid for what (little) they do. In fact this is exactly what I am targeting.

I'm sure you realize your situation is somewhat unique and not applicable to the other 99.999% of us who post here. But I'm sure it would be nice "w*rk" if you can swing it.

 

[RonBoyd]

not applicable to the other 99.999% of us

You may have grossly underestimated.

 

[kumquat]

If my employer asked me to take a post-retirement seat on the Board of Directors I would do it. They are very highly paid for what (little) they do. In fact this is exactly what I am targeting.

R

If your mega-corp is NY listed, you may want to read this.

 

[Kroeran]

the whole subject of corporate governance is confusing to me.

seems like a tail wagging the dog situation, where the supposed "servants" of stockholders (the elected board) end up "ruling" stockholders, with the senior executive group being co-conspirators with the boards in figuring out how to exploit the corporation for their own benefit, rather than building value for the shareholder owners.

with this it should be no surprise seeing management getting obscene bonuses, golden parachutes and all the rest, while draining stock value and employee pensions.

I havn't spent too much energy looking into this, as I don't own stock. Am I wrong about this? Does anyone measure this problem of rogue governance and incorporate it in their strategies?

 

[Milton]

seems like a tail wagging the dog situation, where the supposed "servants" of stockholders (the elected board) end up "ruling" stockholders, with the senior executive group being co-conspirators with the boards in figuring out how to exploit the corporation for their own benefit, rather than building value for the shareholder owners.

I havn't spent too much energy looking into this, as I don't own stock. Am I wrong about this? Does anyone measure this problem of rogue governance and incorporate it in their strategies?

No, you are not wrong.

Unfortunately, there is not much that small investors can do about the situation. I suggest staying away from corporations with two-tiered share structures, which just magnifies the problem (see generally Many Shares, Little Power For Change).

P.S. If you don't own stock, what do you invest in?

 

[Kroeran]

P.S. If you don't own stock, what do you invest in?

#1 education
#2 pension year credits, government defined benefit indexed
#2.5 staying married
#3 mortgage pay down
#4 commercial condo low LTV first mortage (10%)
#5 gas station low LTV first mortage (10%)
#6 vacation property
#7 karma ; - )

 

[RonBoyd]

#1 education
#2 pension year credits, government defined benefit indexed
#2.5 staying married
#3 mortgage pay down
#4 commercial condo low LTV first mortage (10%)
#5 gas station low LTV first mortage (10%)
#6 vacation property
#7 karma ; - )

I put 2.5 and 7 at the top -- and they are considered the same thing.

 

[Kroeran]

I put 2.5 and 7 at the top -- and they are considered the same thing.

true...occasionally situations have arising over the years where I might have more intensely demonstrated a propensity for senior management, and increase the pension credit rate, and I chose to turn the computer off and go home.

often, senior managers are people who don't want to go home, either because there isn't someone to go home to, or there is someone they don't want to go home to, or there is someone they want to go home to, but they have to pay for the alimony from the first or second failed marriage.

also, the most efficient and effective pathway to engage the karmic universe is indeed sitting on the couch right beside you.

 

[Milton]

#2 pension year credits, government defined benefit indexed

You are all set financially, and the rest is mere fine-tuning. Aren't you lucky!

I agree with the importance of #2.5.

 

[Kroeran]

what was the phrase in Trading Places..."luck had nothing to do with it"

though I know that's not what you meant..

working in the public sector has its own particular tortures, and there were a couple of times I walked out in tears...pulled myself together and went back in...most of my friends from my youth didn't go back in

my current challenge is along the lines of "better to know where you want to go, and not know how to get there, than to know how to get there, but not know where you want to go" - film, Gods must be crazy

not sure the human mind was designed to operate in a stress-less vacuum.

 

[Milton]

not sure the human mind was designed to operate in a stress-less vacuum.

Dunno, but after a hugely frustrating day at work today, it sure sounds appealling!

 

[Kroeran]

I guess the goal is to find the sweet spot, not too much, not too little, though having a job to complain about is envied by some

one thing I have seen is people who have early success, professionally, as well as personally, seem to be compelled to self destruction out of boredom, possibly so that they can start over and have problems to solve.

 

[Alan]

I think maybe you used to work in a cubicle near me. Anyway, sounds like you do stay busy working on the spreadsheets to optimize the work/nonwork ratio.

Well, if you are going to play hookie and call in "sick," be careful what you post online.

"Facebook page costs woman her benefits"

I second that warning. Earlier this year my sister's boss went on sick leave for a month but posted lots of pictures on Facebook of her 2 week vacation in Spain which resulted in her losing her job. Apparently she was "on the cusp" as it was and this incident that completed the documentation the company needed to give her the push.

 

[Alan]

I've already been asked if I would consider working with my soon to be ex-company on contract and I could be tempted as I get on really well with all my co-workers and all the management. However, for the next 3 years we have already laid out the plans to live in various places in the USA, England and Australia so the temptation is easily eliminated.

I am very lucky to currently work in such an environment, although it hasn't always been like that and three times in my career with megacorp I have got to the stage of saying "move me or lose me". The first time it happened they lost me (1984) but then re-hired me 12 months later.