Sunday, November 23, 2008

Full Time

I am about to become a full time stay-at-home-mom. 3 more days of work, and my employer will become my son...and my home.

This was not my decision, but I am excited about it...on one hand.

I've been working in the aircraft industry, and 3 of the larger aircraft companies here have announced layoffs due to the crappy economy. Over 1600 people are projected to lose their jobs in the next year. Probably more because contractors (like me) are not included in that number.

See, I was offered a full time position with my company, twice in the last year, but I only wanted to work part time. They were fine with that, but I had to go through a temp agency as a contract employee. No big deal to me. I didn't need benefits anyway.

Of course, this was all before the economy took a nose dive. When I hired on, my company was kicking butt, selling more planes than we could make, and everyone was happy. Fast forward 3 months. Orders are slowing down, some customers are canceling orders, and contractors are first on the list to go.

When we first heard about layoffs, I started thinking that I WANTED to get laid off. That way, the decision to work or not wasn't made by me, I would just go with the flow. And then my boss told me on Tuesday that my job was safe. They had ranked all the engineers in our department (over 65!), and I was nowhere near the bottom of the list. They had decided to lay off a couple full time employees and keep me. I was a little disappointed that I wouldn't be staying at home with the boy more, but also thankful that my salary would continue.

24 hours went by. I got a call from the temp agency confirming that my job was safe. Then my boss called me back into her office after lunch. Apparently, HR had yet been informed that contractors were staying while employees were being let go. Once HR was told, they vetoed...and said company employees got to stay first. I understand, in a way. They'll get more TIME out of a full-timer, but those engineers on the bottom of the list? They're probably not doing as much work as I'm doing in just 3 days.

The bad thing is that by the time my boss called me BACK in, I'd gotten used to the idea that I would keep working...only to be told that I'm out of a job. And I was just getting to the point where I felt like I was really contributing. Oh well.

The good news is that my boss loves me. And WHEN things turn around, I think she will call me to come back. And the GREAT news is that I get to spend so much more time with Lil Major. And maybe I'll even find time to do some of the projects I've been wanting to tackle. The scary news is that our income is dropping drastically. I've got some ideas on how to make our $$ go further, but I'll have to dig even deeper. And I'm looking into some other part-time, work from home, type things. That would be great!

So, 3 more days, and no more alarm clock, no more driving to work in the ice/snow, no more walking a mile in from the parking lot. My emotions are still a little wacky about all this, but I'm so excited to start this new chapter, too!

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

It's scary but you will love it. You'll wonder how the time goes so fast....it never went so fast when I was at work all day! I'm excited for you!!!

Eliza said...

It's SO great that it wasn't your decision! What a blessing that is. I'm jealous....

Heather said...

The same thing happened to me, 6 years ago! It was hard having my position eliminated, and also that I only had a 2 day notice before I started my "new" job. I always thought I would be all organized and have a plan for staying home and bam..., it just happened. Good luck and have fun. I've have 2 more children and can't imagine going back to the workforce now with 4. By the way, the projects just never seem to get done, but plenty of cuddling, games and cooking will.

Amy said...

oh i am so so jealous! but i'm sure it's hard to feel like you were 'forced' in some ways. how fun though! our decision is looming...

bandofbrothers said...

wow. i'm so sorry that you lost your job, but am so excited that you will get more time with your dear boy. we are doing dave ramsey next month. john will most likely be getting a pay cut next year--so i understand how you feel. now that i am REALLY paying attention to finances, i can't believe how wasteful i used to be(using to much paper towels, leaving light on, buying clothes etc..)

Terri said...

wow that is great! and a little scary! but so great! I'm a little jealous too, I had always hoped to be a stay at home mom but it never quite worked out that way. I hope it works for you all, it's going to be awesome for lil' major.

Jody said...

You can do it. Have you gone through the Dave book yet? Get your budget set, figure out what you can live without. And sell some stuff to pay off debt. Let me know if you have any questions.

Olive Oyl said...

Wow... a blessing and a burden at the same time. We are in the same boat (kind of) right now... our finances are being cut, and while I"m home with Sam right now and that is fantastic, it doesn't help that I'm constantly worried about money that is no longer coming in. Hope it all works out for the best, and for now, enjoy that time off with your precious little boy!!!