Screwed
13 September 2007My company laid me off last December, which was to be effective at the end of September this year. I had 4 months of full severance along with a retention bonus if I stayed the entire time. Sounded like a decent return for putting my career on hold for the better part of a year.
When the new job came around, I made it clear that I intended to keep my commitment to the old company and stay the entire 9 months. I wanted to help them transition in a replacement (once they finally decided to keep the business viable) and not leave them hanging with no one who could do my job. I wanted to keep my word. And I wanted to take 2 weeks of my severance prior to starting at the new company to decompress. Is that too much to ask?
Apparently it is, because they informed me yesterday that the wording in my contract stated that I essentially give up my right to take severance if I take a job at an “affiliated company” which it is. I was under the impression that I would get severance until I started the new job. Accepting the position was enough to disqualify me.
I’m pissed off. I could have gone over to the other company months ago and made over 40% more than I did last year. I could have recieved stock options at their pre-IPO price which has gone up ~$50 since they went public. I could have left a job that has gone nowhere in the 3 months since they announced that they were not shutting down afterall. I could have left a job who hasn’t even hired a replacement for me to train despite giving them 2 1/2 months notice.
I stuck around out of loyalty. I stuck around because I said I would. I stuck around because I thought if I did the right thing, I could have two stress-free weeks at the end of it to relax before moving on. And now I can’t even feel good about that.
on September 13th, 2007 at 8:55 am
Couldn’t agree with you more. With as many job reqs as the “new company that just went IPO and is an affiliate of the old company”
it’s not like you couldn’t have gone there after you took every dollar of their severance, too. You were trying to do the right thing and it totally bit us in the ass.
I’d like to think that doing the right thing will pay off more times than it doesn’t, but not this time that I can see. Time will tell, I guess.
One potential upside, though….if you had left 6 months ago you probably wouldn’t have made up for the retention bonus you’re going to get with the increased salary. AND if you had left at the end of the severance the stock options offered would undoubtedly be at a much higher strike price - which in itself may be worth tens of thousands of dollars in light of how the share price has gone through the roof.
Still, though, it sucks.
on September 14th, 2007 at 5:37 pm
Ouch.
If my career has taught me any meta-concepts, it’s that going the extra mile down Loyalty Road for medium-to-large employers ultimately counts for nothing. Zero.Organizational loyalty is a forgotten relic of our grandparents’ time.