A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Unemployment Line
A funny thing happened on the way to the unemployment line. After being laid off last Wednesday night I took a few days to cool off and then on Monday drove up to the office 50 minutes away to wrap things up: collect my last paycheck, return my company issued laptop, and clean up any personal effects I might've left at my desk. I met with the HR director, Frances, who had a folio of paperwork for me. "Let's go to a private room," she suggested.
Our conversation started off with all the basic pleasantries. Frances explained again about how layoffs work, assuring me that it had nothing to do with my skill or performance, only that there were too many people for what the company could afford. I assured her that I was not angry and not even particularly surprised- much like I'd said to my boss already (see " Staying Professional").
"One of the things that happens when you're laid off is that you're eligible to be rehired if a suitable position opens up," Frances went on to explain.
At first I thought this was just another pleasantry, a boilerplate clause that HR types always repeat because it's in the official policy even though it rarely happens in practice. But what she said next surprised me.
Kelly- the VP of another team who I'd worked with last Spring- had only learned about the layoff after it happened. He was shocked to hear I was cut, as he had a high opinion of me. He had a position open and was eager to talk to me about it!
I responded that the opportunity to work on Kelly's team was interesting and that I'd like to speak with him to get more details. Frances said she'd help set up a meeting to discuss specifics. She added that if we could come to terms reasonably quickly she'd try to bridge my employment dates- meaning that I'd have continuous salary and benefits.
I spent the rest of Monday elated. Though I do have reservations about the company (which I've discussed before) and I don't know all the details of this job yet, it really got my spirits up to know that there might be a way to press the "Easy!" button on this whole issue of unemployment.
Our conversation started off with all the basic pleasantries. Frances explained again about how layoffs work, assuring me that it had nothing to do with my skill or performance, only that there were too many people for what the company could afford. I assured her that I was not angry and not even particularly surprised- much like I'd said to my boss already (see " Staying Professional").
"One of the things that happens when you're laid off is that you're eligible to be rehired if a suitable position opens up," Frances went on to explain.
At first I thought this was just another pleasantry, a boilerplate clause that HR types always repeat because it's in the official policy even though it rarely happens in practice. But what she said next surprised me.
Kelly- the VP of another team who I'd worked with last Spring- had only learned about the layoff after it happened. He was shocked to hear I was cut, as he had a high opinion of me. He had a position open and was eager to talk to me about it!
I responded that the opportunity to work on Kelly's team was interesting and that I'd like to speak with him to get more details. Frances said she'd help set up a meeting to discuss specifics. She added that if we could come to terms reasonably quickly she'd try to bridge my employment dates- meaning that I'd have continuous salary and benefits.
I spent the rest of Monday elated. Though I do have reservations about the company (which I've discussed before) and I don't know all the details of this job yet, it really got my spirits up to know that there might be a way to press the "Easy!" button on this whole issue of unemployment.