Capitalist Piggies

1-Never trust a boss. Ever.

2-When all the big cheeses call a meeting and tell you "We're not liquidating the company", you have about a week of employment left before they - [beat] - liquidate the company.

3-When the big cheese hisself sez "_____, we need to talk with you" and there's only three in the room including a stranger, your time is done.

Stupid me, forgot rule #1 in the corporate life, "Never trust a boss, ever". Even if you give them 8 years of your life, if - stupid you - you're still "low man on the totem pole", when the hard times come, even if self-inflicted by said big cheese(s), you, my friend, are el-toast-ola. As in gone, outta here, sayronara. Well, that was my week. And your humble narrator doesn't have a fucking clue where to go from here. The US electronics industry is dead, all the big guys shipped it overseas.

I won't badmouth my ex-employer, there are some good people there, maybe not those holding the reigns but some good folks there nonetheless.

I reserve my scorn for the HR/payroll bunch brought in circa 2005 or thereabouts, Administaff. HR folks are usually pretty cold and impersonal especially at RIF/layoff/firing time, but you guys take the fucking cake - your hatchet folks are goddamn reptiles, what flows through their & your veins is not blood but icewater - they demanded I put a notary seal on the release of liability document that authorized my severance pay. Fire me, make me release you from any liability in order to get what's due me and charge me up to $25 for the 'privilege'? Fuck you, Administaff, you are now a flag and where you are, I will not again be. Dammit. Wish I could show you what those reptiles made me sign and notarize but I did make them notarize it for free.

BTW, Mike Judge's movie Office Space is the real thing. If your boss ever announces Hawaiian shirt day is Friday be afraid. Very afraid.

update 05 May - SOS, the folks at the top make the big mistakes, the folks on the bottom pay the price. I've had my fill of this. Anyone else?