14 ms·
At the beginning of the year, I decided it was time to find a new job after 10 years with my employer. I spent February doing interview prep and conducting inte
by Rebles 7y ago
At the beginning of the year, I decided it was time to find a new job after 10 years with my employer. I spent February doing interview prep and conducting interviews. Back then, the COVID-19 was mostly limited to China, markets and governments weren't terribly concerned about COVID-19.
I accept a job offer, put in my two weeks notice, and my last day at was last Friday. Hardly anyone was seriously concerned about COVID-19 when I gave notice. A week later, business travel was suspended and WFH policies implemented. My last day, schools were closing, and the economy tanked. This week, we're sheltering in place.
I gave myself 3 weeks in between the old and the new job, you know for relaxation and travel. Instead, I'm sequestered to my house for 3 weeks.
Everyday, the news got worse and worse and continues to get worse and worse. Now, I'm in between jobs, and am a little worried my new employer will revoke my job offer. To add insult to injury, one reason I didn't leave my previous job was job security. But in February, there wasn't any sign of an economic downturn. Everyone was enjoying the bull market.
- trimbo 7y agoTough spot... best of luck to you. Hopefully that job still comes through.
- toomuchtodo 7y agoAsk your old employer if your role is still available. Plans change, and if you left on good terms, they might be amiable to your return if you need that option.
- Rebles 7y agoIf my new employer bails, I might consider this. But I would probably try to find a new new job before then. Also, my boss wanted me to confirm 3 times what my last day would be, because, once he put it in the system, his hands were tied. I guess the LDO (Last day of office) process is pretty streamlined to tie up all the loose ends: halting pay checks, revoking unvested RSUs, stopping medical benefits, revoking user entitlements, etc.
- earthtourist 7y agoNot a lawyer, but I wonder if you couldn't sue if they withdraw the offer. Seems like a case of detrimental reliance or promissory estoppel. Again, not a lawyer and surely depends on which jurisdiction you're in. Also, you could post on HN if they do withdraw the offer during this outbreak, so other people would know they suck.
- nogabebop23 7y ago>> Also, you could post on HN if they do withdraw the offer during this outbreak, so other people would know they suck. So every company that lays off an employee "sucks"? I guess you're welcome to stay and work for free, but if they don't have money to pay you what are they supposed to do? I agree this situation is terrible for the OP, but I don't think we need to name and shame every company that makes a prudent decision as the world moves in a abad direction...
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]
- OJFord 7y agoGP said that in reference to rescinding a job offer after notice given, new job accepted, and old job left, not a 'layoff' exactly.
- true_religion 7y agoPersonally, I think employment in the US should look more like it does in Europe. People rely on work to survive, and shouldn’t be fireable easily, and unemployment should cover at least 75% of your previous salary.
- drakonka 7y agoI am in Europe; here it is common to have a probation period. After this period it is less easy to fire someone, but during the period they can do pretty much anything. So if you happen to be switching jobs right in the middle of an economic crisis there is not much security. In addition, in my country you get your salary covered up to 80% if you pay for extra unemployment insurance. I was stupid and did not sign up for this earlier - and you have to be a member for 12 months to get the benefit. If you do not have unemployment insurance or have not been a member for 12 months, you get <900 USD per month (where I live this is not enough to make rent).
- fokinsean 7y agoIf it makes you feel better, I quite a cushy job and joined a startup a month ago. You're not the only one with bad timing :)
- emit_time 7y agoSame position here. Thankfully starting at a FAANG, so less likely to see layoffs than smaller more vulnerable companies. Scheduled to start on 3/30
- eropple 7y ago> But in February, there wasn't any sign of an economic downturn. Everyone was enjoying the bull market. First: I’m super sorry about what you’re going through and I hope things work out with your new employer. Second: I worry that “nobody could have known” will be the narrative. A very large portion of my circles was aware that COVID was about to explode and that the prevention measures would either drastically slow the economy or not be taken and the impact would be worse. Super uncontroversial. And like, I’m just a guy. On an individual level, that excuse is unfortunate, but the individual level doesn’t matter much (except for the individual, of course). On an institutional and a governance level, we’re likely to excuse the failures of our leaders because we ourselves weren’t paying attention.
- sonicxxg 7y agoTrue, you could see this coming a month ago. This narrative is very naive. I closed all my stock positions back when the first cases outside China started to pop up, and nobody seemed to care enough to control it. I've been buying puts ever since, and could not be happier. When life gives you lemons, you need to make a lemonade, and not make excuses for your bad calls.
- sonicggg 7y agoTrue, you could see this coming a month ago. This narrative is very naive. I closed all my stock positions back when the first cases outside China started to pop up, and nobody seemed to care enough to control it. I've been buying puts ever since, and could not be happier. When life gives you lemons, you need to make a lemonade, and not make excuses for your bad calls.
- phnofive 7y agoDepending on the country and an observer’s cynicism, I think the majority of nations understood early on that it was already far too late to significantly dampen the impact of such a deadly and infectious virus. The United States government was thoroughly informed of this risk via Operation Dark Winter but never geared up for it - perhaps this is best managed by states once the infection crosses the border, but preparations on those levels weren’t completed either.
- 7y ago
- _bxg1 7y agoCould you check-in with the new company? I'm in a similar situation and checked-in with mine, and they said they were happy to onboard me remotely, no problem.
- Rebles 7y agoYeah. I've checked in. They're planning on shipping my laptop to me on my start date. Everything is fine–for now. But things have changed so dramatically day by day, it's hard to know where we'll be in 2 and a half weeks. I worry when I see the markets dropping 7% every other day. I read stories how non-tech industries are cancelling job offers during this time. I think my future employer is well insulated, being a tech company. We'll see!
- PopeDotNinja 7y agoStart interviewing again. Seriously. Worst case scenario your new job works out. That's pretty good downside.
- Rebles 7y agoThis is solid advice. If I'm afraid of losing my future job, then, better start looking now! Thanks!
- ethbro 7y agoAlso, side note, if you already signed paperwork with the new employer, press as hard as you think you can get away with, as soon and frequently as you can. Squeaky wheel gets the grease. Sometimes, there's nothing they can do (hiring freeze from the C-level); but other times, they need to turn 10 hires into 3. Those 3 typically end up being the ones who push for it. Would definitely push on both fronts. Good luck!
- krolley 7y agoIt's a good idea to hedge your bets, but at my company (>50k people) we now have a hiring freeze so anybody that already got an offer is lucky to have just squeezed in. If you can get in touch with your hiring manager perhaps you could talk to them about it directly?
- samfisher83 7y agoA lot of companies have stopped travel, interview, vendor visits.
- rsynnott 7y agoSome companies are doing interviews fully remotely right now.
- rpastuszak 7y agoI quit my job in mid January because of burnout, left London for a couple of weeks and came back this Sunday. I’m looking for remote roles exclusively. Now I’m not sure if the timing is perfect or just plain terrible:) Also, I stopped reading the news. I just don’t think refreshing Twitter every 10 min whilst self isolating can be good to your mental health.
- krupan 7y agoI think every time is remote right now, and could be for months. I'm hoping that by then everyone will be more open to keeping roles remote
- poooogles 7y agoDepending upon what you're looking for we might be able to help. ML company in London that's open to fully remote people. (email in profile)
- robinduckett 7y agoIt doesn't seem to be (or did you have to take it out because you were inundated? :p)
- poooogles 7y agoSecond times the charm. It's there now.
- wlesieutre 7y agoEmail field in profile isn’t publicly visible, you’ll have to add it to the about box
- baby 7y agoI need to stop reading the news too, I’m in pretty deep now...
- all2 7y ago
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]
- wbrasky 7y agoI was in the process of a job search while working at a foundering startup back in December. Interview processes were paused over the holidays and scheduled to resume in early January. Jan. 2, first day back at the old job, I was laid off. Had my final interview at another startup the following week and got an offer. Started end of January. We're all WFH for at least 2 weeks, and it's beginning to look like much longer than that. We've got connections to the retail sector, so I do wonder about that, but we have seen at least a short-term uptick in activity, presumably due to hoarding. Fingers crossed we all make it through this.
- adam_fallon_ 7y agoI left work due to burnout and wanted to try my hand at doing something creative - creating a new product. Had some time set aside for travel before I started, but then this all happened. Could not have picked a less convenient time to try and travel and make money off SaaS / AppStore. I remain optimistic and am expecting to learn so much more than I would have in the more comfortable market we are now leaving behind. To health and family first though.
- seige 7y agoSimilar situation. DM if you want to explore a collaboration.
- Bubbadoo 7y agoActually, it's especially good timing to be starting a business during a financial crisis. I know, I've lived through 1987, 1993, 1998, 2002, 2008 and now c-19. During these times when people are getting RIF'd (Reduction in Force), they're understandably panicked, nervous, in shock, etc. Most employees are not thinking of what service or product they can cobble together and bring to market, but how to swiftly rejoin the job market. This leads to a shortage of new startups spinning up as well, because the economy has gone to the dumpster. Good times, bull markets and strong economies make everyone feel more confident. Who wants to gamble when the world is going to hades in a handbasket? Not a lot of people. Then there's the cost factor. My experience during past financial implosions, demand for everything plummets. I get the idea we're living in more of a robber-baron era than even just 5 years ago, but still, you'll be able to negotiate everything from office rents to infrastructure, salaries of new hires, hotels and airfares for business travel. Obviously, I am going to throw my hat into this ring for these very reasons. Good luck and good day!
- cyberpunk 7y agoSame boat. Don't panic. From my end, I'm due to start a new gig on monday and everyone at my new client/employer currently has out of office replies when I email them about the procedure for the first day.... Which is brilliant... :/ Fortunately they're rather a hitech company so I hope we can just work remotely. Still have to go and collect laptop and rsa certs and such though...
- hisfastness 7y agoSorry to hear. I'm in a similar situation. I left Microsoft and moved to a new country a few months ago without having a job lined up specifically because I wanted time off for burnout and to learn development (my background is in QA and Program Management). I'll stay the course for self-teaching development but I may need to expedite the job hunt in lieu of the recession. We can commiserate together :)
- ccajas 7y agoI have been laid off just before 2015 and I haven't found any stable work since then. I have been under-employed for a long while before the outbreak, and I don't even know what new change-ups in job hunting I should be doing now. For a long time, many people have said that my years of experience make me valuable so that I should have gotten offers very quickly, but the reality hasn't shown that. Heck, even the founder of the startup company has told me, when I asked for his reference, that he was "very confused" that I haven't found any work for so long. And that was only a year in. He unfortunately can't give me work anymore as he's tied up with his business. He did consider me for a follow-up freelance job before, but that was more due to a technicality that they needed a US developer for a particular job. After being evaluated on mock interviews, turns out I'm in the peculiar situation where I am too underqualified for my years. But at least I have some experience working remote that should make me more appealing to employers. I just can't call it impostor syndrome anymore if I consistently fail at getting full-time offers even when the economic climate was good.
- nwsm 7y agoIt sounds like you've gotten enough positive feedback to know you're not an imposter. Sounds like it's your interview skills or first impression?
- ccajas 7y agoIf I consistently fail interviews then it's reasonable for me to conclude that I really could be an imposter. But I have gotten interviews from many places small and big, including some FAANGs and Bay Area companies. If it's just first impressions then I could be like a decent TV show but with a bad pilot. Seems like I might be an "acquired taste" kind of professional.
- inlined 7y ago“Under qualified for your years” is ageist bullshit. You’re either a capable L3,4,5,etc. Any coupling of those achievement brackets to age ranges (which cannot be completely detached from experience level) is discrimination.
- sshine 7y agoI'm in the exact same situation.
- UncleOxidant 7y agoI was doing drone control software (RPi based) for a startup that ran out of funding last November. They told me that they were going to keep looking for investors/funding and if they got money they'd call me back to work immediately. And there were some promising signs in December/January that they might get some funding. So, since I liked them, they liked me, and the gig was fun I figured I'd put off looking for other work until later in the Spring just to see if they get the funding. Welp, now I really doubt they're going to get that funding.
- WrtCdEvrydy 7y agoName of startup? This sounds fun.
- UncleOxidant 7y agoIt was fun. But it pretty much doesn't exist in any economically viable way at this point.
- yosito 7y agoI was in a similar situation. My new employer revoked my job offer on the day I was supposed to start.
- drakonka 7y agoI am in a similar boat. Resigned just before this hit. I am still working out my notice at my current job and my new employer assures me everything is fine, but I still feel like I picked the craziest possible time to finally move after eight years at one company! Oh well, fingers crossed for both of us.