MrMatt
Banned
So the last several months I go through this long draining soul-crushing job search, and finally land a job at this organization, as a Mental Health Counselor. I started on March 16th. It pays good, the benefits are great, the paid trainings are nice, and the work atmosphere is great. It's easily my favorite job I've had.
Now, I live in MA and our governor is a flaming retard. Our state has somehow managed to go almost as broke as California. As such there's been state budgets cuts, etc. 2 weeks ago we have an office meeting, and find out we lost contracts with the department of mental health for covering a different part of the state. Our boss says not to worry, that our jobs are pretty much safe, and that our division may even be expanding to pick up the slack. Everyone breathes a sigh of relief.
Fast forward to yesterday, I get a letter in the mail saying that I'm out of a job as of July 1st. The other new worker got this letter to. So did the assistant program director. Now I'm just curious...who hires people when they're shearing the company in half?? There's even still jobs posted on their website. They say that the position they are most in need of is....Mental Health Counselor. WTF? No it's not. you're letting half of them go.
And why did they bother with all this training I got if they're just going to dump me? I also feel bad for the people I work with, they're mentally ill and most have abandonment / trust / attachment issues. They just got transferred from other counselors to me, so they're still uneasy...and now they're going to have to do it again in a month or two. This blows. I thought for once something was working out for me in my career field. 🙁
Epilogue:
For giggles, here's the beginning of the letter, I love how they worded it.
I love the 'significant changes on July 1st'. Yeah there are changes. The job's evaporating. I can put in for a transfer to another branch, but who the heck knows if A) I could get a job close by, this branch I'm at is the only one remotely close to where I live B) I could even GET one of these other open jobs and C) If that job wouldn't evaporate either.
Not good times.
UPDATE: So the division director came in yesterday. Apparently he wasn't originally but since my program was at near riot status (even people not losing their jobs are pissed) he decided to come in and explain everything. I sat and listened: They're trying to streamline the program and make it so that many different departments have input into the behavioral/treatment plan for clients. That doesn't sound too bad up to that point. Then he explains that the actual therapists/counselors don't have as much (I think that actually means ANY) input into the treatment plan they're implementing with clients. Odd. He also then explains that since our program has both in-house and outreach clients (some of our clients live in the residence I work at, others in the surrounding community) it is being split into two completely different programs. Seems like that just creates a shitload of unnecessary overhead to me.
Then we get to the juicy part. I ask him point-blank: Why were we (me and other coworker at program) hired when there was the possiblity our jobs would evaporate. He says, "well we didn't know what the state would accept as far our restructuring plan, etc.".
Me: "Right, ok....one other thing, what was the timeline for all this?"
Him: "Well we started planning this in December and submitted a final proposal in early February"
Me: "So the plan you submitted in February had these two jobs being eliminated."
Him: "Unfortunately yes"
Me: So why was there a job ad for this position which I answered in late February. You were interviewing and hiring for a job you knew would be eliminated in a few months. On top of that I was pitched on how stable this job would be and how steady it is"
Him: Well that is unfortunate it might be a thing where one hand doesn't know what the other was doing. H.R. was supposed to tell you guys that there was recontracting and that it could effect jobs.
Me: I was told nothing, nor was my coworker, the only thing we heard about recontracting was that it wouldn't effect us. I turned down several other job offers to come here, entrance into a master's program, and left another temp job that ironically would've lasted past my last day here. Now one month in I already know the day I''m being laid off
Him: Well you're not being laid off, nobody is losing their jobs. There's other jobs being created.
Me: I have a job here as a mental health counselor. This is the job I applied for and wanted, and received. This job is evaporating. If I wasn't losing my job you wouldn't have mailed out 'how to find work at outside agencies' as part of my lay-off packet. I am losing my job. You can't just say no one's losing their job because other jobs are being created; I'm not even qualified for half of them, and most of the others are over 40 miles away from me. There's not even a guarantee I would get any of them even if I applied. When someone applies for a job it's usually because the parameters of that job meet what they're looking for. You're taking that job away, creating other jobs that don't match those parameters and claiming it's a wash.
Him: Well....yeah.
At that point the conversation was pretty much over, he got up & left, and basically the entire staff except one person said they're probably leaving before July 1st anyway, so maybe there will still be a job for me lol.
Now, I live in MA and our governor is a flaming retard. Our state has somehow managed to go almost as broke as California. As such there's been state budgets cuts, etc. 2 weeks ago we have an office meeting, and find out we lost contracts with the department of mental health for covering a different part of the state. Our boss says not to worry, that our jobs are pretty much safe, and that our division may even be expanding to pick up the slack. Everyone breathes a sigh of relief.
Fast forward to yesterday, I get a letter in the mail saying that I'm out of a job as of July 1st. The other new worker got this letter to. So did the assistant program director. Now I'm just curious...who hires people when they're shearing the company in half?? There's even still jobs posted on their website. They say that the position they are most in need of is....Mental Health Counselor. WTF? No it's not. you're letting half of them go.
And why did they bother with all this training I got if they're just going to dump me? I also feel bad for the people I work with, they're mentally ill and most have abandonment / trust / attachment issues. They just got transferred from other counselors to me, so they're still uneasy...and now they're going to have to do it again in a month or two. This blows. I thought for once something was working out for me in my career field. 🙁
Epilogue:
For giggles, here's the beginning of the letter, I love how they worded it.
I love the 'significant changes on July 1st'. Yeah there are changes. The job's evaporating. I can put in for a transfer to another branch, but who the heck knows if A) I could get a job close by, this branch I'm at is the only one remotely close to where I live B) I could even GET one of these other open jobs and C) If that job wouldn't evaporate either.
Not good times.
UPDATE: So the division director came in yesterday. Apparently he wasn't originally but since my program was at near riot status (even people not losing their jobs are pissed) he decided to come in and explain everything. I sat and listened: They're trying to streamline the program and make it so that many different departments have input into the behavioral/treatment plan for clients. That doesn't sound too bad up to that point. Then he explains that the actual therapists/counselors don't have as much (I think that actually means ANY) input into the treatment plan they're implementing with clients. Odd. He also then explains that since our program has both in-house and outreach clients (some of our clients live in the residence I work at, others in the surrounding community) it is being split into two completely different programs. Seems like that just creates a shitload of unnecessary overhead to me.
Then we get to the juicy part. I ask him point-blank: Why were we (me and other coworker at program) hired when there was the possiblity our jobs would evaporate. He says, "well we didn't know what the state would accept as far our restructuring plan, etc.".
Me: "Right, ok....one other thing, what was the timeline for all this?"
Him: "Well we started planning this in December and submitted a final proposal in early February"
Me: "So the plan you submitted in February had these two jobs being eliminated."
Him: "Unfortunately yes"
Me: So why was there a job ad for this position which I answered in late February. You were interviewing and hiring for a job you knew would be eliminated in a few months. On top of that I was pitched on how stable this job would be and how steady it is"
Him: Well that is unfortunate it might be a thing where one hand doesn't know what the other was doing. H.R. was supposed to tell you guys that there was recontracting and that it could effect jobs.
Me: I was told nothing, nor was my coworker, the only thing we heard about recontracting was that it wouldn't effect us. I turned down several other job offers to come here, entrance into a master's program, and left another temp job that ironically would've lasted past my last day here. Now one month in I already know the day I''m being laid off
Him: Well you're not being laid off, nobody is losing their jobs. There's other jobs being created.
Me: I have a job here as a mental health counselor. This is the job I applied for and wanted, and received. This job is evaporating. If I wasn't losing my job you wouldn't have mailed out 'how to find work at outside agencies' as part of my lay-off packet. I am losing my job. You can't just say no one's losing their job because other jobs are being created; I'm not even qualified for half of them, and most of the others are over 40 miles away from me. There's not even a guarantee I would get any of them even if I applied. When someone applies for a job it's usually because the parameters of that job meet what they're looking for. You're taking that job away, creating other jobs that don't match those parameters and claiming it's a wash.
Him: Well....yeah.
At that point the conversation was pretty much over, he got up & left, and basically the entire staff except one person said they're probably leaving before July 1st anyway, so maybe there will still be a job for me lol.
