An Insiders View of Corporate Layoffs

Some unfortunate news that I've been reluctantly anticipating for some time now came to the forefront today when my former employer, a local RV manufacturer, announced job cuts. I'm sure it comes as no surprise to any of us given the state of the economy, gas prices and the cost of a luxury RV. In addition another local RV manufacturer announced last week that each of their employees would see 5% pay cuts while their CEO would see a 25% cut. Such sacrifice by an RV CEO is astonishing to me as a former insider and I'm sure it may not sit well with other CEOs within the industry.



While the attitude and the mood of the corporate brass during these times may appear solemn to those of us on the outside whose only view is through the media, I can assure you that when the lay-offs are complete the upper management will breathe a sigh of relief and will be happy to have a burden lifted from their shoulders. In fact from what I have seen, I would estimate that in 90% of cases relating to job cuts or "lay-offs" of this sort the mood will be much brighter mainly because of the people who are gone. The corporations see this as an opportune time to "Weed the Garden" so to speak. I'm not talking about just axing the weak but axing those who have pissed off management for one reason or another. This being the case, nobody is safe here- from those whose personalities just don't mesh with the good old boys', to those who were unfairly hired into an un-posted position due to their relation to or status with a management head outside of work. Nobody is safe here! Step on the wrong toes just once and you'd better beware!



I, myself, was fortunate enough to have survived 3 large scale layoffs while under the employment of said RV company but i'm not sure that fortunate is highly accurate description of seeing friends pack up their desks and head home one last time because some jackass with in imported mahogany desk can't control his liquor consumption or some clown's brother needed a job or some sorry excuse for a technology director insisted that his minions give a company laptop to the son of VP who was more than willing to pay for it or how about when this same ignoramus suggested that an employee cancel long distance on their home phone and just use their company cell phone for long distance because that's what he did, and what about that Internet service on the corporate jet that only works 50% of the time at best, that's right I said corporate jet and what a luxurious flight that is. All the liquor you can handle, snacks, bottled water to further promote global pollution, and even a little debauchery and sexual harassment on the side. However I may have felt through these times I'm sure was nowhere near comparable to what my fellow employees could have been feeling in their freshly unemployed state but perhaps the worst feeling of all was that feeling of teetering on the edge. The feeling you get when the company announces that layoffs are coming, in order to appease the shareholders. You know the old men who have more than their fair share of currency and are unwilling to part with any decent sum in which a charitable organization may greatly benefit from? We would often get the announcement anywhere from 2-5 days ahead of time, as standard employees. But then there's the supervisor world, a world I was allowed into only when convenient. We would usually get the heads up on layoffs up to a week ahead of time so that we had ample time to prepare for the untimely departure of our piers and by this I mean that we would get the names of people slated for layoffs way before they knew that they were being issued a one way ticket home. A whole week? Really, we need this much time? Does it seem ironic that during such times there was plenty of gossip to go around the management world of which the main subjects consisted primarily of the employees to be laid off? So with anticipation building, I would do my best to hold back and not tell people that there day was just around the corner and they should open up and tell the Director the truth about himself. Lay-off day would come. And go. And I would get furious, only to have my supervisor tell me that it was pushed back a day or two but for why nobody knew. These were people's careers, we were playing with here. Real people. People with families to feed, car payments and mortgages. But who cares right? They had pissed someone off or did something a different way or didn't have the right personality, screw their families and most of all screw their lives. Looking back now, realizing what I had allowed myself to be sucked into and take part in, never happy about it mind you; I realize just how oblivious I was to it all, yet somewhere in the back of my mind I knew just how immoral the ways of this outfit were.



In regards to the recent announcement made by my former captor, perhaps the most ironic piece is where the CEO states something to the effect of not being able to predict the continuing decline of consumer confidence caused in part by deteriorating credit markets and record-breaking crude oil prices. Seriously? Do you watch the news, sir? You're a college graduate for crying out loud! If these are the wits of a millionaire, that fully explains my current financial status! To add to the absurdity, this character contributed a healthy (by normal American's standards) chunk of change to the 2004 reelection bid of our current Commander in Chief. You know that really funny guy that heads up the government? The government who won't do a damn thing about oil prices, oil consumption, price-gauging or pollution. Yes Oil, you know the stuff that is used to make the gasoline that is quickly approaching $5 a gallon and is used to fuel large RVs which happen to burn it at an average rate of 5 miles per gallon or so I'm told. Hmmm where's the problem?

It is a sad thing to see some really great people, some of the best I've ever worked with, at this place once again. As an outsider now, my view has changed and I think I truly understand what a terrible thing this is. On the other hand, the brass deserve what's coming to them in the form of failure but the unfortunate irony of all this is that at the end of the day, even if the company was to fold, the brass will be the last to feel the hurt. Send the Comptroller home jobless and he's still feeding his family, in fact it would probably be an opportune time for him to take a much needed vacation before he decides his next move whether it be with another corporation or as an independent consultant charging hundreds per hour. Send the guy installing cabinets home jobless and he's trying to figure out how to afford to feed his family, put gas in his car to go apply for new work, and make this month's rent.