What did you do when you faced a job loss?

[hinodis]

DH found out today that he will be loosing his job on September 1st. This gives us 6 months to prepare. I canceled the vacation. I have been looking at job openings all morning. How does one find another job? He drives a recycle truck. Not alot of job openings in that field. I am just sick to my stomache. Sadly, I know I am far from being alone.

 

[dwfanatic]

Spreading pixie dust your way!!!!

 

[Acklander]

He should start looking to make a swap now. It's always easier to find a job when you already have a job. Also, if the entire company or department is being cut, it's easier to find a job in your field when you're not competing with all your co-workers for the one spot.
Find out what the amount of unemployment he will receive. Try and live off that amount now and bank the rest of his check. This will give you and your family some time to get used to the cuts ahead of time.
Good luck

 

[hinodis]

He should start looking to make a swap now. It's always easier to find a job when you already have a job. Also, if the entire company or department is being cut, it's easier to find a job in your field when you're not competing with all your co-workers for the one spot.
Find out what the amount of unemployment he will receive. Try and live off that amount now and bank the rest of his check. This will give you and your family some time to get used to the cuts ahead of time.
Good luck

The City has decided to cut out the whole department. How do I find out what his unemployment will be?

 

[HM]

We found out my husband would lose his job (many years ago now) about two months beforehand. We made sure we took are of all doctors and dentist appointments while we still had coverage and money. It took him an additional four months to find a job.

Since your husband is a driver, I'd have him start looking at employers who have drivers for delivery like bread or drink distributors, UPS, Fedex, locations with warehouses, etc. I think his job skills could be used in many different locations. Good luck to you guys!

 

[Marionnette]

DH found out today that he will be loosing his job on September 1st. This gives us 6 months to prepare. I canceled the vacation. I have been looking at job openings all morning. How does one find another job? He drives a recycle truck. Not alot of job openings in that field. I am just sick to my stomache. Sadly, I know I am far from being alone.

I'm really sorry that you're facing this. The only positive side to this is that you have a 6 month warning. Canceling the vacation was a good start. Now go thru your bills and start slashing what you can until you are spending nothing more than you will if he has to go on unemployment. Then use the difference to build up your emergency fund during the next 6 months.

If you have credit card debt don't rush to pay it off now. It's too late for that now. I know that it goes against everything that gets preached on this board but having cash on hand for emergencies is more important than paying off your credit cards. You can continue to tread water by paying your minimums every month until your financial picture improves.

Start looking into health insurance coverage if you're covered under his employer. If you are working outside of the home, check to see if your employer offers a plan. It will be cheaper than paying out of pocket for your own policy in many cases. Loss of a job that provides your health insurance is an acceptable reason to bypass the open enrollment period.

Change your withholding at work so that you are not getting a huge refund in 2012. You will need the money now for your emergency fund, not next April. If you're getting a refund this year, put it into savings.

I really can't help with the job search. But I want to wish you luck. I hope he finds something before his job is terminated in September.

 

[bettymae1121]

If he has his CDL he can get just about any kind of driver job. My brother works for FedEx, he does their freight deliveries. He works M-F with pretty set hours although he does get a lot of overtime, especially right before the holidays when stores really stock up on merchandise.

Check and see if there are free workshops in your area for job seakers. Often churches, community centers, local governments, etc. run workshops where they will help you dust off your resume and help you with interview skills. Also keep an eye out for job fairs.

As for the household budget, I agree with every one else. If you don't have a budget already, make one up with your current spending and then look for places to cut. Obvious places are cable tv, cell phone plans, eating out, enterainment (going out to the movies etc.). You can also shop around for lower insurance rates for car/home/life insurance (keep the life insurance though!). If you do cut cable 100%, I do recommend that you get the cheapest Netflix plan available ($10 I think) so you'll have some entertainment options. Look for lower prices for internet but don't cut it completely, internet access will be key in your husbands job search, it's worth the money! For cell phones, if you aren't under contract or can get out of your contract for not too much $$$ then pre-paid cells are a great bargin. I have t-mobile pre-paid and I spend $100 A YEAR for my cell, DH pays even less (then again, we don't use them much either!).

If you'll be losing your medical coverage start shoping around for that too. Unless someone in your family has a cronic condition, I recommend a low premium, high deductable plan - what you're really looking for is something that will cover your for a catastrophic illness/injury and has a decent prescription plan, but doesn't cost you much in monthly premiums. You can save money by getting a plan that doesn't include maternity coverage (I'd assume you wouldn't want to add to your family while your DH is unemployed so that's a great place to save on medical insurance). If at all possible, try to keep medical coverage though. I personally think that after housing, food, and heat it's the most important line item on a person's budget.

 

[MichelleinMaine]

Check and see if there are free workshops in your area for job seakers. Often churches, community centers, local governments, etc. run workshops where they will help you dust off your resume and help you with interview skills. Also keep an eye out for job fairs.

Goodwill Industries (yes, same folks as the thrift stores) have job training/placement assistance centers. These aren't for folks with brain injuries (their "main business"). In this economy, thrift store sales are way up, so there was money to open job centers for those needing to find new work.

Good luck!

 

[ccgirl]

Is there a monthly bill (say car payment) that you can pay in full now and save that money later? Start stocking up on perishible foods etc. now so you have a surprass if he has not found work before the layoff happens. Right now, you are in a bit of shock and frantic I am sure. Try to be calm and start the job hunting right away. That's great you have 6 months to prepare. If you have a mortgage/rent try to save up as much as you can so you can pay those if your DH has not found another job. Good luck.

 

[MyDizneyBoyz]

Tell EVERYONE you know that he's looking for a new job. You'd be surprised at how many unadvertised jobs are out there or perhaps he can get a foot in the door somewhere because a friend of a friend knows of an opening and would be willing to push a recommendation through.

Go to your state's dept of labor website and you should be able to find a calculator that will give you the details on how much unemployment he'll qualify for.

Thanksfully you've got some time to plan and it sounds like you're off to a great start.

 

[thebeesknees]

Sounds like you've gotten great advice so far. Best wishes to you, OP.

 

[Disneefun]

Took me awhile to find it, but here's an article I read a few years ago that has some really sound advice. We used it when DH had to take a big paycut and was in danger of being laid off. The main point is to act now, don't wait to start making cuts.

 

[hinodis]

Thanks for all the great advice. I am definitely in shock. I own a small business so I have no insurance. My business is not enough to carry us. Luckily we have NO credit card debt. Only owe on the house and my new car. I have plane tickets to Florida so I guess thats a loss. I am currently paying for braces and private school for DD and college for DS. I feel like I can't think straight.

 

[Arielle22]

DH needs to inventory what his job skills are and then figure out what types of jobs need those skills.

You say he drives a recycling truck but has he had other jobs with other skills? Does he have his CDL and what is he qualified to drive with that?

This is the time to think out of the box and see what opportunities are out there. Also he has some time if he needs a class to brush up on a skill or learn a new one.

 

[Marionnette]

Thanks for all the great advice. I am definitely in shock. I own a small business so I have no insurance. My business is not enough to carry us. Luckily we have NO credit card debt. Only owe on the house and my new car. I have plane tickets to Florida so I guess thats a loss. I am currently paying for braces and private school for DD and college for DS. I feel like I can't think straight.

Talk to the financial aid officer at your son's school. They might be able to find some aid for him in light of your changing finances. If nothing else, they will be able to tell you what you need to do to refile for aid if your husband doesn't find work by the time the fall tuition comes due. There might be some on campus jobs that they can point him to.

As a small business owner, I can commiserate over the health insurance. But Cobra might be too costly to pay into. So begin looking into catastrophic insurance policies that will cover you. It won't pay for routine office visits or prescriptions but if anything unthinkable should happen, you will be okay. If you are in all in good health, this is a reasonable short term idea. If you are a member of any professional organizations, check to see if they have any group rates for health insurance.

Can you work some hours at your daughter's school in exchange for reduced tuition? Talk to the director to see if there is anything available. We have seniors in our public school system who work to reduce their tax burden. They do everything from answering phones to light maintenance duties during the day. Perhaps her school has or can create something similar?

I don't know if your plane tickets are refundable but you might be able to change them for a fee depending on the airline. They usually issue a credit to your account to be used at a later date and then you pay the fee when you use the credit.

Your business may not be sufficient to carry your family but you will have your husband's unemployment compensation to help. In the meantime, maybe you can increase your own hours, promote your business more heavily or expand your client base. I don't know if this is even possible but if it is then go for it.

Take deep breaths and cleat your head. You're dealing with a big shock but like I said before, you have 6 months to get ready for this.

 

[akcire]

Thanks for all the great advice. I am definitely in shock. I own a small business so I have no insurance. My business is not enough to carry us. Luckily we have NO credit card debt. Only owe on the house and my new car. I have plane tickets to Florida so I guess thats a loss. I am currently paying for braces and private school for DD and college for DS. I feel like I can't think straight.

This happened to my husband about 10 years ago. We had a 3 1/2 month warning. I prepaid 2 months of our mortgage, to prepare.

I still tried to pay it each month based on our other bills, his unemployment, and my salary; but it provided a cushion so we didn't feel like we were drowning. It took him 3 months after he was laid off to find another job, by then we were only 1 month prepaid on the mortgage.

He also received a small severance package, but we kept that in a savings account for any unforeseen expenses.

Good luck

 

[Tink-n-MrIncredible]

If you do not use coupons, try starting now. I would check out CVS, Rite Aid and Walgreens. They often have items you will use (tooth paste, tooth brush, deodorant, shampoo, etc.) where you pay the price for an item and get your money back minus the tax. This way when funds are tight you do not have to spend extra money on tooth paste, etc. Start getting a little extra at the grocery now two extra can corn, peas, etc. See if you can get items that you will use when they are on sale and possibley combine with a coupon.

Sorry for your upcoming situation, I hope and pray he will find a job soon

 

[Sorsha]

I am with you OP, only for us, it is coming sooner rather than later. My husband is facing loss of his job at the beginning of March. We have known it was coming for while, so we have been preparing as best we can.

In our case, it is a consequence of the poopy economy in our area, he works in a very small cabinet shop, and they just haven't had any orders for way too long. The construction industry in our area is dead. We saw an estimate the other day that there is more than a 2 year supply of housing just sitting in the market, and more being foreclosed on every day. Unfortunately, the employment market is also dead. Since he knew he would be unemployed soon, he has been applying for new jobs, but nothing has worked out yet. He will keep trying. Someone told him that for every help-wanted add they run in the paper, they get an average of 200 applications. His skills are also a wee-bit specialized.. not a lot of call for out-of-work cabinet makers. He is thinking of teaching himself something he can do from home, like small engine repair, to try to make some money from home. We shall see...

In any case, since we know things will be tight for a while, we have been paying things off if we can (a few small bills here and there) and lowering any bills we can. Unfortunately most of our monthly bills are under yearly contract - cell phone, Dish, etc - so I am kind of stuck with them for now. We only have one car, and it is paid off, so no car payment. As long as DH is going to be home with the kids more, I will be increasing my hours at work (I work part time retail). We are getting a decent tax refund, and all of that is going directly into the savings account. I have been shopping sales, and I have stocked up the pantry and the freezer with things that can be cooked in bulk to make soups, or things that will make more than one meal like roasts, etc. I have also stocked up the toiletries and cleaning products.

If worse comes to worst, and things reallllly drag on, DH does have an IRA retirement account that he could cash some money out of. I believe he could do so under a "hardship" circumstance and not have to pay any penalties, or pay only reduced penalties. Not sure, we would worry about that if it came to pass.

OP if your family will be losing their only source of health insurance when your husband loses his job, start making appointments now. Get everyone in to see all their doctors now. Get checkups, see dentists, get eyes checked, order new glasses, make sure immunizations are current, have a yearly female exam, do anything that the insurance will allow you to get done before you lose it, etc.

Good luck to you OP, and MANY <<hugs>> . You are so not alone. So many in this awful economy know what you are going through, and I hope we will all pull through. Maybe we can all have a DisMeet when its all over! Survivors Of The Awful Economy Meet For A LapuLapu!

 

[LISMYLIFE]

I’m sorry to hear this is happening to your family. You said his department is being eliminated by the city. Is the city going to use an outside company to provide the service? If so, that company will need more employees to cover those new routes.

Talk to the city and find out who they are out-sourcing to and jump on that potential opportunity!

 

[crusoe2]

We've faced this several times in the last few years. Sometimes with a little warning and sometimes with none. I second what a pp said about your DH getting out there NOW and looking for another job. He may have less competition or an employer who doesn't need him now may need him by Sept.

You've gotten lots of good advice on how to prepare in the event that he doesn't find anything right away or has to take something with less pay. One of the blessings of finding out this far in advance and at this time of the year is that you have time to plan for a garden this summer to help with food expenses. It doesn't have to be a full-scale thing - even just planting some big pots with tomatoes and strawberries could be a help. Think of what kinds of produce your family likes and if there is anything - especially something that tends to be expensive - that you could grow yourself, that's one way to make sure you still get to have it and save a little money.

If you do go full scale with gardening, learn how to freeze and can what you grow and get the gear you'll need for that (if this isn't something you already do).

You might also want to start thinking ahead on clothes for the kids and hit end of season sales, flea markets, yard sales, etc and get clothes for later as inexpensively as possible. If there is anyone who might have hand-me-downs they could send your way, get the word out to them.

Also take a look around your home with an eye toward anything that could help you make or save money. Is there something that you've been needing and putting off buying that could help your budget? You might want to consider making that purchase now while you have the money.

Also use this time to head to the public library and the I'net to read up on other ways to tighten the belt and make what you have last longer. There was a thread on here for awhile - I don't recall the exact title but it had to do with "painless stretching things" I think. Lots of good info on there.

Good luck.