OT - I Got Laid Off

Nancy,

I don't really have any specific advice for you, but I was laid off in March and know how scary it can be.I was devastated at the time and cried everyday for a couple of weeks, but actually think I will end up sending my former employers a Thank You card in the end. Give yourself a little time to think things through before you make any real decisions. You may very well see further options as a bit of time passes.

Do you think that it had anything to do with your DX? As I understand it, BC is considered a disability and that means employers have to make accomodations for you.

I know this isn't much help, but I am sending positive energy your way.

Nancy,

Hope you don't mind me moving down one Stage to respond to your posting. First off, this is really too bad. I am sorry that you have been laid off. A difficult thing, especially, as you know, at your age. Traditional graphic design is no longer a career path with lots of openings. However, if you are willing to shift a bit to the left, there is an adjunct career that has lots of opportunities.

If you were willing to retrain yourself on web design, all your current skills would be transferable. The new skills you would need to learn would include wireframe mock-sups [just use whatever design program you already know,] graphic optimization [you would need photoshop], and css2. The css skills, and how to integrate them into common front end languages would make you very valuable. There are a number of self-study options, and of course, there are classes that are available for a fee.

I won't bore everyone with techie-speak, but if you would like a list of resources to get started, just PM me.

*susan*

p.s. And you have some time! Three months should be enough time to gain these skills and be ready to get another position. 

Nancy,

On top of my regular job, I do freelance editing, and I remembered that a former writer client of mine did some Web design for a company called nSight. It's based in Massachusetts, and it's specialty (if I remember correctly) is placing people in the communications field. I found the website:

http://www.nsightworks.com/welcome

If not an answer, maybe it's a place to start and get leads/ideas from?

Hi Nancy, Sorry to hear about your lay off. But don't despair.

& Congratulations on the purchase of your townhouse. You have an investment/security  which is good in today's economic climate and you're close to your family which is HUGE.

Try to relax and breathe. Although this door is closing another one will open for you. You will find something biggert and better

( I changed vocations and opened my own company  3 yrs after my dx and have never been happier !!)  I am close to your age too!

Good luck

If I hear of anything, I'll pass it along to you asap...

Yikes Nancy,

I'm sorry to hear this.  Other than putting feelers out for your field, some other job, maybe might even have to be entry level, but at least something that would offer insurance.

I would also HIGHLY recommending you apply online for SS Disability.  I'm not sure about IIIa, but I did get it w/a IIIc dx.  Sucks that you have to sign something saying you have a condition that could ultimately take your life, but it has been a Godsend for my family going forward.  I was only working part time, but my husband is getting close to early retirement and we still have 2 kids to put through college, so it will be immensely helpful.

Keep us updated!

Sharon 

I'm so sorry. I hope the good advice from the other ladies help. I haven't checked into S's disability yet since I just got on Ltd. But I was surprised to find out that at 53 I fell into the untrainable group.

Just chiming in to wish you luck and to say that what has happened to you is one of my nightmares.  I'm 59 and work for state government.  It's not just the lack of salary, but the health insurance that is frightening.  Not to mention serious age discimination.  

Wish that we lived in a more civilized country where we did not have to worry about the insurance issues. 

 Hang in there.

Sue 

I'm sorry to hear that, Nancy. I'm glad, though, that you can at least get early retirement. Perhaps you'll be able to supplement that with some freelance work if you choose.

I'm beginning to think I'll be stuck in my job until I'm retirement age...at least another 12 years. Ugh! I'd really like to move back east, esp. to Tennessee or North Carolina. I don't believe the jobs figures either. One day the media say everything is coming up roses, and the next we hear that the stock market has gone down, housing sales have tanked, and another company has laid off half its employees. It's very discouraging.

Hi Nancy, I am not Stage III but I noticed the "laid off" post and wanted to tell you something you may not know. Because you are a Dislocated Worker by definition, there is federal funding under the Workforce Investment Act (aka WIA program) through the Dept of Labor to help you pay for the web design class. Often for short term voc ed training like that, it would be completely covered. I am an Employment Specialist in CT and I work with dislocated workers and I send them to training all the time. There are many different trainings to choose from, not just web design but it is worth taking a look at this.

Also, there is funding called OJT or On the Job Training where the feds pay part of your salary while you are learning a new job. So say an employer liked everything about you but was reluctant to hire you because the time it would take to train is costing them money and you are not yet producing. The feds can pay some of your salary (depending on size of employer how much) which can offset the risk while you are learning the job. The employer just sets up bench marks like "Nancy will learn a in month one and b in month two" and then they get the money.

Wishing you luck on your job search. There is lots of help at your local One Stop Career Center and they are all over the country. Here is the website to find your local office.

http://www.servicelocator.org/onestopcenters.asp