Fridays at 5:30.
Some consolation during Hard Times
Almost everyone has a negative job experience. Almost everyone has a boss that they butt heads with, and a person at work that drives them absolutely bonkers. People miss out on well-deserved promotions and raises, and more often than not –they try to make the best of it (even if that means multiple weekly happy hours).
But what happens when you are told that you may hate your job, but we actually don’t care? Please leave. You’re fired. You’re not laid off. You’re out. You are NOT the one we want for the job. It’s hard, your emotions go haywire – and usually the only solace is Obama’s raise in unemployment wages – and the comfort of your former coworker friends. Who are, like siblings, the only ones who understand completely.
Without setting myself up for T.M.I., (too much info…) I will say that a good friend of mine lost his job on Friday at approximately 5:00 pm. It took until around 5:30 for everything to sink in, and he was here until a little after 6 cleaning up. It got me thinking about what it means to be fired, and what job security means in the 21st Century.
If anything, we have been told as workers under the age of 55 that we have very little security at all. We normally don’t focus as much on 401K’s because of the lack of security they involve. We don’t usually get tenure (unless you are in certain professions of course), and job loyalty is of a different meaning. We are loyal to certain people, places (check out my post on cities and careers), and even philosophies. But that doesn’t put us in one job for our whole lives.
Thinking about being fired is scary. It is hollow, and it almost makes us question ourselves from the inside out. We think about all aspects of our lives – from finance to next moves to family – in that one moment where we are told our services are no longer required.
I felt really awful on Friday, and the morale all of yesterday was pretty low around here. Firing someone – for either correct or incorrect reasons – leaves a hole in the fabric of an organization. One of the most important things we can do for each other as workers – and as humans – is to be cognizant of that fact. Recognize the humanity in your job, and do the same when you become the head honcho. It’s one of the most important lessons anyone can learn. And no blog is going to teach you how to do it.
Career, Challenges | Beth Oppenheim January 26, 2010
1 Comment to “Fridays at 5:30.”
RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URI
By Sam Karol, January 26, 2010 @ 3:43 pm
Office morale is such an important factor in the success of a company, but unfortunately, some executives don’t take it into account. It makes sense though…if you want your company to do well, you need to have dedicated employees who work hard. If your employees are pissed, or worried, or paranoid, they’re not going to work as hard. It sucks when someone gets fired. You’re right that it leaves a hole in the fabric of an organization. If nothing else, it’s a reminder that being employed is not something we should ever take for granted. Thank you for reminding all of us of to remember the humanity in our jobs. It definitely is one of the most important lessons anyone can learn.