S.O.S - Terrible work situation - Advice pls.

[Hamlet]

If it was me, I'd take the severance and look for a job at a different company. Whenever a company is paying their people to leave, its a good bet that the company is not doing well.

I work in IT, and generally, the layoff packages start better than they end, as the company spirals down.

You sound very employable. I suspect that you will be able to find a decent job with a company that is not imploding.

Does anyone know if you can get unemployment if you take a package?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tracker The severenance package would pay the mortgage for two years. (approximately) We are 11 years into a 15 year mortgage. (we owe $40K at this point on our home) Worse case scenario we could refi and stretch it out to a 30 year term, mortgage would be approximate $400-$500 instead of the current $1200. Severance would be maybe $24K after taxes. Not enough to pay off $40K mortgage. Things would be tighter, but we could get by. What kills me about this whole mess is that we were so on track to pay off the home and be debt free. I feel like I am ruining our plans and de-railing our future. If I could last 5 more years I could pay off the mortgage and get my 401(k) close to $300K. (and have a total of 20 years on the paltry pension) That was the goal. My goal was to be 45 years old (41 now) and have no mortgage, $300K in retirement savings. However, I haven't 'liked' my job for several years now. This new job would be absolutely miserable. (most of the team gone, outsourcing main focus) On one hand I value finanicial security. Very, very, importanti to me. On the other hand, I have only one life to live. I don't want to be even more miserable in my job than I am now.

[Lsbcal]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tracker ...What kills me about this whole mess is that we were so on track to pay off the home and be debt free. I feel like I am ruining our plans and de-railing our future. If I could last 5 more years I could pay off the mortgage and get my 401(k) close to $300K. (and have a total of 20 years on the paltry pension) That was the goal. ...

From the perspective of an older guy 41 is still pretty young. Your goals are admirable but there is really nothing magic about paying off the mortgage. We still have one in retirement and it comes in handy at tax time (like in the case of this year's zero cap gains tax in the 15% bracket). Anyway, please don't feel guilty or beat yourself up over this. Perhaps it's time to revise your goals and come up with a new 5 year plan. I bet you have a lot more options then you think and will look back on this a few years from now and be glad it got you going in a different direction. Good luck and let us know how it goes!

[megacorp-firee]

What Brewer said about taking a deep breath. You don't seem to be in any critical (other than feeling real sh*tty) situation.
FIREing from megacorp after 30 years, I have had my fair share of downsizing, rightsizing, outsizing, and every form of that.
Here is what I would suggest (after taking that deep breath):
1) a) take the job as a stop gap. We've all done stuff we would rather not. b) work on your new plan to get a 'better' job at your company
2) a) make your list of contacts (EVERYONE you can think of, especially those above you in the food chain. This is where your network (I hope you have developed one) will be crucial
b) give them all a call and let them know your situation and ask them to keep their eyes and ears open
3) make a list of your skills
4) get your resume up to date
5) work your *ss off so people can see that you are a valuable member of the organization
6) start checking other companies, in case nothing shows up in your current one
7) update your lawyer skills (however one does that) and take the bar ... to give yourself some other alternatives (not sure if this is a viable alternative, but one that came to mind)

Good luck to you on this. I KNOW from personal experience. how stressful this can be. I personally was on 'both ends of this' at least 4 times in my 30 years at megacorp.

[Ed_The_Gypsy]

From the value of your house and other clues, it appears that you live in an out-of-the-way place, a small town somewhere. Your options may be limited. With your qualifications, you may be forced to work away from home anyway. A tough situation for a homebody.

However, you CAN survive a change. It is an opportunity to make a clean break. Don't panic.

Best of luck.